


To Find The Safety Of Home

by Magnonette



Series: A lot can happen to Snufkin [11]
Category: Moominvalley (Cartoon 2019), Mumintroll | Moomins Series - Tove Jansson, 楽しいムーミン一家 | Moomin (Anime 1990)
Genre: Angst, Birds, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fluff and Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Injury, Running, Sickfic, Snusmumriken | Snufkin Whump, Whump, falling, i guess
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-10
Updated: 2021-02-21
Packaged: 2021-03-05 19:06:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 13
Words: 33,149
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25830289
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Magnonette/pseuds/Magnonette
Summary: Snufkin had been running for a while when he found himself in a mudslide.Moomin and Little My had been waiting for him to arrive back from his trip south.They could never have imagined it would be in these conditions.
Relationships: Mumintrollet | Moomintroll/Snusmumriken | Snufkin
Series: A lot can happen to Snufkin [11]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1441966
Comments: 11
Kudos: 138





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hey, hey, hey! It's me! With a new fic!
> 
> Okay, to be fair this one isn't really new, I started writing it about a year ago and stopped after a few chapters when I had to fix a mistake in the order of a few of them, but, now i'm finishing it and you'll finally get to read it!
> 
> (Also the title may or may not change, depending on if I have a better inspiration for it and if I'm not too lazy to change it)

Snufkin ran. 

He ran through the forest. Up the mountain path. His face tense with fear.  
He couldn't stop.  
He knew that his assailants probably gave up on pursuing him days ago, but, he couldn't stop. Not until he knew he was in the safety of the Moomin House.

His mind was blank. His body exhausted. He couldn't feel his feet hitting the floor with each step. He was hungry, felt sick to his stomach from fear, starvation and exhaustion. It was a miracle that he was still able to run, even to stand, in these conditions.

He didn't notice the dark clouds gathering in the early afternoon sky. He didn't notice the storm until it started pouring rain on top of him.  
In an instant, he was soaked, the path under him becoming muddy and slippery. 

Still, he didn't stop running.

Suddenly, lightning strikes the upper path. Only then did he finally slow down.  
His fear turned to horror as he saw the avalanche of stones approaching him quickly. It wasn't a big one, but big enough that the stones were up to his knees.

Pain striked through his legs as he was hit by the many stones. He lost his balance for a moment, and then, he could only register the ground underneath his feet as it gave way and sent him rolling down the steep path with the stones.

He couldn't even scream as he fell, the shock and the days of endless running having taken away his voice. He could feel his body getting hit on it's way down, pain shooting through him. Then he could only feel his head banging on something hard and a great pain as his vision faded to black.

He woke up, probably hours later, face pressed against the ground, in the mud. He found that he couldn't move, he was paralysed. He wasn't sure if it was from the pain and injuries from the fall, or from the exhaustion after having pushed his body passed it's limits for days. The rain was still falling hard, causing more pain with each drop.

The sky was growing darker and his eyelids were heavy. He knew, of course, that he shouldn't fall asleep there, under the rain and hurt as he was. But, when he went to try to stand up, he found that he couldn't even move a muscle, the pain increasing as he tried.

He really should get up and find somewhere safe to rest. But his exhaustion and the pain forced him to stay there, laying in the mud under the heavy rain. His eyelids fell shut and he couldn't find it in himself to open them again. He didn't have the energy to fight to stay awake despite him knowing how dangerous it was to fall asleep under the rain.

Once again everything went to black, the pain becoming a distant feeling.

In the morning, the first birds started to sing, flying happily over the forest. When they noticed the vagabond, still unconscious, they immediately gathered around him. They tried to wake him up, calling him, making worried noises, but he didn't even stir.

All birds and animals of the forest knew and loved Snufkin. He never really minded when they talked to him and, sometimes, he would even talk to them and play his harmonica for them.

So seeing him so still, unconscious, soaked and possibly more hurt than he looked at first sight, they couldn't help but worry. They quickly agreed that they needed to go find some help and they quickly flew away, toward MoominHouse.

It was the first day of Spring in Moomin Valley. In MoominHouse the Moomins were just waking up. MoominMamma started to prepare pancakes for breakfast while MoominPappa decided to just go back to writing his memoirs as he seemed to have found a new motivation during his hibernation.

Moomin groggily made his way to the kitchen, greeting his mother. His eyes were still heavy with sleep. Yawning, he looked outside. Most of the winter's snow had already melted, as if winter had never really been there in the first place. The only real reminder of the season was the lack of tent next to the bridge.  
Moomin sighed. 

Snufkin wasn't back yet.

While it wasn't unusual for the mumrik to come after they woke up from their hibernation, waking up without the beautiful and joyous sound of Snufkin's harmonica wasn't as pleasant. Moomin always found it harder to wake up like that.

He jumped when Little My yelled a greeting in his ears.

"What was that for?!" Moomin complained, frowning at the little mymble standing on the kitchen table with a wide and mocking grin.

"Already missing your boyfriend?" She mocked.

"Shut up My!" He exclaimed, blushing slightly. "Snufkin isn't my boyfriend (yet). We're just best friends."

She was about to mock him some more when MoominMamma intervened, scolding her about making fun of Moomin and standing on the table.

"It's not any of your business Little My." She said gently. "What is going on between Moomin and Snufkin has nothing to do with you. Although, I'm sure they would form a perfect couple." She added, giving Moomin a gentle but teasing smile and a wink.

"Mamma!" Moomin cried, burying his face, now completely red, in his paws.

MoominMamma chuckled a little at her son's reaction as Little My burst out, laughing so much she almost fell off the table. Moomin simply crossed his arms, turning his head away, pouting.

"Now children, how about you go play outside while I prepare the pancakes." She suggested.

They nodded and made their way outside.

As soon as Moomin set foot out of the front door, they noticed a group of birds coming their way. The birds came flying to them, turning around them. They seemed panicked, their song quick and worried, as if they were trying to tell them something important and urgent. Of course, neither Moomin nor Little My could understand them as only Snufkin was able to do it and to talk back to them.

"I'm sorry but we can't understand what you're trying to tell us." Moomin apologized.

They stopped turning around them, instead they started flying towards the bridge and back to them over and over until Little My spoke up.

"I think they want us to follow them Moomin." She explained to the confused troll.

"Oh!" Was the only thing he could say, finally seeming to understand what was going on. The birds seemed to confirm it.

They urged them down the path to the bridge and in the forest. Moomin felt his chest tighten as he realised that they seemed to be heading to the path leading south and pass the mountains. He glanced at Little My, scanning her expression to see if she thought the same as he did. He was surprised when he could see her frown, visibly very worried. His worry increased as he finally saw where the birds wanted to take them. He let out a shocked and surprised gasp as he saw it.

Snufkin layed there on the grass, a pile of stones covering half of his body. His hat was feet away from him, slightly crushed by more stones. Snufkin was obviously unconscious, his flushed face tense with pain and discomfort. His closed eyes had purple bags under them. And he was still soaked from the rain.

Moomin hurried toward his friend, kneeling beside him.

"Snufkin! Snufkin! Wake up! Please Snufkin!" He cried, shaking his friend's shoulder in his panic.

Little My was shocked into silence, standing still behind Moomin. She watched him as he tried to wake up her little brother. Suddenly, a realisation hit her. She finally approached them and put a hand on Moomin's shoulder to get his attention.

"Moomin." She called out, voice shaking slightly. She spoke gently but firmly. "We should carry him to MoominHouse so, Mamma can help us."

Moomin looked at her for a moment, turning over her words in his foggy mind before nodding.

"You're right." He sniffed, looking at Snufkin again.

He rubbed his eyes, wiping away the tears, before starting to push away the stones off of Snufkin. With the help of Little My they made quick work of it, allowing them to see his legs. Moomin slowly and carefully turned him over. A gasp escaped his mouth as he could now see the face of his friend.

Most of his it was covered in a mixture of mud and blood. There was a bloody gash on the side of his head. Moomin couldn't help the renewed tears that rolled on his cheeks again at the sight. He turned to look at Little My. She had her hand over her mouth and tears in her eyes as well. They stared at each other for a moment before it dawn on them that they needed to get moving quickly.

Moomin swallowed and carefully picked up the mumrik in his arms. The movement seemed to hurt him as he let out a faint groan. They started walking down the path where they came from, still guided by the worried birds. Moomin tried not to jolt Snufkin too much, to not hurt him more. Little My ran ahead of them, glancing back from time to time to make sure they were still behind her.

They hurried through the forest and onto the dirt path toward the house. When they could see it in the distance, Little My ran ahead and in, letting Moomin take his time while she found MoominMamma and explained the situation to her.

When Moomin finally reached the porch, MoominMamma ushered him inside, thanking the birds that were still flying over them and assuring them Snufkin would be alright.

Moomin laid the unconscious boy on the couch before stepping away to give enough space to MoominMamma to examine him. She immediately set to work, examining his head injury first and cleaning up the wound.

"How about you go play outside while I take care of him." She suggested with a gentle, reassuring smile as she turned to look at them. "He'll be alright once I'm done treating his wounds. You don't have to worry. I'll call you back when I'm done."

Reluctantly, they nodded and headed back outside to sit on the grass in front of the house. They stayed there, mostly silent. They couldn't find it in them to talk or play when they were filled with so much worry for their friend.

Meanwhile, in the house, MoominMamma tried her best to take care of the wound. She didn't know yet if there was any other injury but she knew she had to take care of that one first before examining the rest of his body for more. This one was a bad one, he was probably concussed and who knew how long he had been unconscious and soaked.

She had to be quick.

Once that one was treated and properly bandaged, MoominMamma started to carefully take his damp clothes off. She was interrupted when MoominPappa walked down the stairs, asking what had happened when he caught sight of the boy. She repeated to him Little My's explanation before asking him to go find some clothes for Snufkin to wear. He obliged and helped her undress the boy.

When Snufkin was finally out of his clothes MoominMamma frowned at the new sight in front of her. There was no sign of any bad injuries but he was covered in bruises. But the worst part was his legs. They were swollen, his ankles double their sizes and blue, feet red and bruised.

"Oh dear." Mumbled MoominPappa from behind her.

MoominMamma stayed silent as she started taking care of the injuries. From the look of it she could tell that his two ankles were probably sprained, or even fractured. She couldn't help but wonder what on earth could have happened to him to leave him like that. She knew from what Little My had told her that he must have fallen down the mountain for some reason, but these injuries didn't seem to be from the fall. For what she could see, she could tell that his ankles must have been hurt before he fell down.

She tried to put away all of her thoughts to focus on taking care of his ankles. She would have the answers to her questions when he would wake up. There was no use in thinking about that now.

When she was done, MoominPappa help her dress Snufkin with the clothes he had found for him. She thought for a moment before deciding to call back inside Moomin and Little My. While she called them, she instructed MoominPappa on carrying him to the guest room and putting him to bed as carefully as he could.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading this first chapter!  
> I hope you enjoyed it.
> 
> I'll be posting a new chapter every week (or a little more if I forget but not too long)
> 
> What ever could have happened to our poor, dear, boy? Hope he'll be alright :3


	2. Chapter 2

"Hey Moomin?" Little My called, playing with the grass.

"What?" He replied, not bothering to look at her as he stared worriedly at the house, waiting impatiently for his mother to call for them.

"Do you think he'll be okay?" She whispered, the concern in her voice clear as day.

"Of course he will!" Moomin replied, finally looking at her, eyes wide as he saw her worried expression.

Moomin wasn't used to seeing her so down. She was usually the type to kick him and tell him that everything would be alright, even mocking him for worrying too much. But now, she was worried, he could see it on her face and hear it in her voice. He couldn't blame her for, for once, showing her concern over Snufkin, after all he was her little brother.  
As much as Moomin was worried for him, he felt the need to be the one to reassure her, despite how worried sick he really was.

"It's Snufkin we're talking about. Of course he'll be fine. He always is. He is strong." He tried to comfort her, the same way she always did for him when he got worried when Snufkin was late to come back in the Valley in Spring the other times.

She smiled sadly up at him before returning to playing with the grass.

"What do you think happened?" She asked nervously.

"I don't know." He sighed sadly, trying his best not to cry again. "I suppose he must have fallen."

"Snufkin's wouldn't just fall like that!" She exclaimed, frustration in her voice. She looked away and continued, quieter this time. "He's always careful. I doubt he would have fallen so easily. Something must have happened to him."

Moomin was about to say something, but he was cut short by MoominMamma calling them inside.

When they entered the house, they saw MoominPappa taking carefully their friend upstairs. Moomin felt frustrated that he wasn't asked to do it himself but he tried not to show it. Instead he turned to his mother.

"How is he Mamma?"

"He'll be alright dear." She said simply with a reassuring smile. "He will need a lot of rest but he will be fine."

"Did he wake up at all?" Little My asked rapidly.

"No." MoominMamma frowned a little. "Don't worry. He will wake up soon. I'm sure of it." She smiled again.

"How bad is he? Does he have anything broken? Is he badly injured?" She continued to ask.

"He's probably concussed, I'm afraid. His ankles are sprained too." She explained calmly. "And he also has a fever."

She stopped Little My before she could ask anything more and started going after MoominPappa, followed by Moomin and Little My. They watched him as he carefully laid the mumrik in bed. MoominMamma then placed a damp cloth on his forehead before making sure his ankles were elevated and pulling a blanket over him. They stayed silent through the whole process.

"Do you want to have your breakfast here so you can keep an eye on him in case he wakes up?" MoominMamma asked them softly as she turned to face them, a knowing look on her face.

"Can we?" Moomin asked, playing with his tail.

"Of course dear. I'll bring you your food when it's ready." She beamed at them before leaving the room with MoominPappa.

Little My ran over to the bed to jump on its end. Moomin went to scold her but stopped himself when he saw how careful she was being, making sure not to be too close to Snufkin so as to not hurt him. He approached the bed as well, pulling with him the chair that sat across the room against the wall. He put it right next to the bed, at Snufkin's side, and sat on it.

They watched him in silence for a while. Even when MoominMamma came to give them their breakfast they didn't say much more than a quick thank you. They tried their best to eat their plate, but the thing was, they didn't really have the appetite to eat. The sight of Snufkin laying in the mud and covered by stones, face bloody and twisted in pain, was still burnt into their mind.

The day passed slowly as they stayed next to their friend, observing carefully when MoominMamma came in to change the wet cloth on Snufkin's forehead and make him drink medicine. He never woke up even once during the whole process. Once the medicine was taken and the cloth changed, she checked the wound and his legs again.

Moomin and Little My gasped at the sight. They hadn't seen his legs yet. They were still swollen and his ankle still blue. His face was still pale and flushed, still tense with pain. His body was shaking and sweating with the fever. His breathing was heavy, it sounded like every breath was painful for him.

MoominMamma put a pack of ice on each ankle, being very careful and slow so as to not hurt him, before she pulled back the blanket over him. She then smiled at Moomin and Little My before going back to the drawing room where she sat on the couch and started to knit a new scarf for Snufkin, making sure that it wouldn't look too new as she knew that he didn't liked new things.

Meanwhile, Little My and Moomin had started to play cards on Snufkin's bed to distract themselves a little while they waited for him to wake up. They weren't exactly focused on the game, however, as they would glance up to look at their friend, still unconscious, every now and then.

At the end of the day, Snufkin still hadn't woken up, to Little My and Moomin's despair. They insisted on sleeping next to their friend, on the floor next to the bed, not wanting to leave him alone despite MoominMamma assuring that she could stay with him and keep an eye on him as they slept.

Eventually, she accepted, helping them set blankets on the floor not too far from the bed and in a way that would allow them to still see him when they would be laying down. She kissed their forehead, wishing them to have a good night and not to worry too much about Snufkin.

That night, Moomin was woken up by a faint sound not far away from him. He was still half asleep and he thought that he was just imagining things. Then, he realized that the sound he was hearing was a quiet whimper, Snufkin's whimper. He immediately got up, going to his friend's side without making too much noise so as not to wake up the little mymble who was still fast asleep on the floor.

Snufkin was moving slightly in his sleep. Moomin thought that the fever must have brought terrible nightmares to the poor mumrik. His movement seemed to be causing him great pain. His breathing was uneven and heavy, worse than before, and he was sweating a lot.

Moomin knew he had to do something about it before Snufkin hurt himself more than he already was. He stroked gently his still slightly bloody and muddy hair, whispering reassurance in his ears.

He moved his free paw to the mumrik's forehead, where the cloth had fallen off on the bed. He frowned, retreating immediately his paw. Snufkin's fever seemed to have increased in his sleep. His forehead was burning hot.

Moomin took the cloth and dumped it in the bucket of cold water that his mother had left next to the bed. When he put it back, his friend moved again, a faint moan leaving his mouth.

Moomin went back to stroking his hair, still whispering to him.

"Moomin?"

The boy's eyes opened a little, looking around but not seeing. His voice was almost impossible to hear despite the silence of the room. His breathing covering the quiet sound of his words. Moomin was more surprised to have heard him than to see him close to waking up.

"I'm here Snuf." He whispered, taking his hand with his free paw and squeezing gently.

"Where?" His eyes stopped on him but didn't focus as if he couldn't see the troll but knew where he was.

"You're in MoominHouse." Moomin explained quietly. "The birds led us to you and we took you home."

"Birds?"

Moomin was about to answer but Snufkin's eyes closed again, his breathing finally evened out as he fell back down into unconsciousness. Moomin sighed sadly as he continued to stroke his hair for a while.

He could feel his heart break in millions of pieces. He had never seen his friend so weak and confused. Honestly? He wished he never had to see him like this.

Snufkin had always been so happy-go-lucky and resourceful, always so careful over everything even when he did something that could be dangerous. He always looked so energetic. Moomin had never seen him sick before, he always looked so healthy. Maybe sometimes he would come back from his winter travel thinner than he was when he had left but he always looked to be fine.

The Snufkin in front of him was one that he had never imagined to see. So weak and sick, and hurt. He was in pain. And he looked so small and defenseless.

There had been times when Moomin had imagined him being hurt or sick. But it was always just in the nightmares that he had during his winter's hibernation. He knew, of course, that Snufkin had to fall sick sometimes, everybody does, but he had never seen it other than in his nightmares. He also knew that he had been hurt in his adventures before, but it had never been anything more than cuts and bruises, a twisted ankle or a sprained wrist.

He sighed again, resting his head on his arm next to Snufkin on the bed. He closed his eyes as he played with Snufkin's hair.

He must have fallen asleep because, when he opened his eyes again, a thin ray of light illuminated the room. As he sat up, he heard Little My move behind him. She grumbled a 'good morning', rubbing the sleep out of her eyes.

"Good morning Little My." Moomin yawned quietly.

"Did something happen?" She asked as she approached the bed, confused as to why Moomin was already next to her little brother.

"Snufkin had a nightmare." He explained.

"Did he wake up?" She asked a little too loud.

"Shh!" Moomin hushed. "You'll wake him up!"

"Sorry." She apologized, pouting.

Moomin felt surprised at first. Little My wasn't one to apologize so quickly. But, then again, Snufkin was her little brother and he was hurt, it was logic for her to try to be a little more polite than usual as she was worrying a lot over him.

"Yes." Moomin said quietly. "He woke up but he wasn't fully awake."

"What do you mean? Did he say something? Did you talk to him? Why didn't you wake me up?" She asked quickly, worry clear on her face but with an ounce of hope too.

"Calm down. I can't answer if you don't give me the time." Moomin sighed. "He didn't say much and he seemed very confused."

"What do you mean?" She asked again, tilting her head to the side in question.

"He looked at me but it was like his eyes couldn't see me." Moomin tried to explain sadly. "They weren't focusing on anything."

Little My stayed silent, looking at her brother with sad and worried eyes.

"I didn't wake you up because with the time it would have gotten me to wake you up, he would have been asleep again and you would have complained that I woke you for nothing." Moomin said with a small smile.

"Still. You could have tried." Little My sighed.

"It was too quick My. It wasn't even for a full minute." Moomin argued.

"Fine. At least he woke up." She said smiling at him a little.

There was a soft knock at the bedroom door. It was MoominMamma, coming in to get them to go downstairs for their breakfast. This time she didn't let them eat in the bedroom. She sent them downstairs with a promise to keep a close eye on Snufkin.

Before going, Moomin explained what had happened during the night to his mother. He told her how worried he was that Snufkin had looked so confused and weak, but she reassured him that it was only normal in his condition and that he would get better quickly now that he had woken up even if it was only once and for a really short time. She stroked the fur between his ears gently before sending him down.

She had prepared a cup of medicine for the mumrik that she carefully settled on the bedside table. She put a paw on his cheek, calling his name gently. It was still very hot. She checked his temperature as she continued to quietly call for him to wake up. Like Moomin had said, his fever was worse than the previous day.

"Mamma?" His eyes opened a little, his voice much too quiet. At least she could hear him enough to make out his words.

"Yes, dear." She said softly. "I made some medicine for you, it will help you with the pain." She explained as she took the cup in one paw, the other sliding under his shoulder to lift him up enough to drink it.

He hissed a little as he was moved but was able to drink the cup without too much trouble. She laid him back carefully. The empty cup went back on the table.

"I have to take a look at your injuries, okay." She said before pulling the blanket off of him.

He started to shiver immediately. She tried to be quick so he could be safe and warm under the blanket quickly. She pulled off the bandages she had put on his ankles to look at them. They were still swollen and blue but they seemed better than the previous day. She put new bandages, apologizing when Snufkin winced, hissing at the pain. She then pulled the cover back on him.

"I need to examine your head now." She warned before she unwrapped the bandage on his head.

He gasped quietly when the wound was uncovered. It seemed like it had opened again, leaving blood on the otherwise white bandage. She frowned as she immediately went to clean it up. It seemed to hurt him a lot but there was nothing she could do other than apologize and promise him that it would be over soon. The medicine needed time to work.

"It's all done now Snufkin." She said after bandaging it up again. "You were very brave."

"…" He tried to say something but his voice seemed to be gone.

"It's alright." She told him gently, as she watched him trying to get his eyes to focus on her without much success, before kissing his forehead. "Now, you should try to get some more rest."

She wetted the cloth again, putting it back on his forehead. He winced as the cold cloth made contact with his burning skin. Then he relaxed again. She stroked his hair gently until his eyes closed again and his breathing evened out.

She sighed quietly, getting up from where she was sitting on the bed and took the cup before leaving the room.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! I hope you like it so far!
> 
> Poor Snufkin, I'm making him suffer a bit again, whoops :3  
> At least he woke up, rigth? :3


	3. Chapter 3

When Snufkin woke up again, he wasn't sure where he was and what had happened. His mind was foggy and trying to remember anything made his head pound. He couldn't recognize where he was either, his vision too blurry to make out any details of the room. He knew, somehow, that he was in a room, inside someone's house. He could feel the soft mattress of a bed under his painful body, a blanket covering him and keeping a little of warmth on his freezing body. He couldn't feel his legs aside from the horrible pain that he would get as he tried to move them, without any success.

Something white appeared in front of his blurry eyes. Why couldn't he see properly? What had happened to him? Where was he? Why was he here? Why was he feeling so horrible? Why was his body so cold and painful?

He could hear a voice. He could distantly make out a name. His name. Someone was calling out to him. A familiar voice. Who?

"Snufkin!"

The voice became clearer. The words pounding in his head. He closed his eyes. It must not have been louder than a whisper but the simple sound was enough to hurt his tired and confused head.

"Snufkin wake up!"

That voice again. Who was it? Why did it seem so familiar to him?

"Come on! Wake up! What? You'll stay in bed forever?"

That one was new. A little more insistent and loud as the other one was more gentle. Still, it sounded familiar.

He tried to open his eyes again. The room was bright, much too bright. The voices talked between themselves, words impossible to make out. A distant noise. The light was almost gone now.

Something touched his hair. A gentle paw, stroking them gently. Though his head still hurt, the gentle movement was soothing. His eyes adjusted a little, not enough to see clearly but enough to see a little more where he was and who was with him.

His mind had a hard time understanding what he was seeing at first but, after a few more minutes, it managed.

'Moomin?' He tried to ask, but nothing came out of his mouth.

The white troll next to him smiled, at least he thought that he could make out a blurry smile.

"Ha! Finally!"

A little figure appeared as she hopped back on the bed next to him. Short, with ginger hair, blurry green where her eyes should be, her voice sharp and brash. Yes. It could only be Little My.

Wait. If Moomin and Little My were there... That meant he was at MoominHouse! How? When? He couldn't remember getting back. The last thing he could remember was that he was on his way back to the Valley. He had to have been around, at least, one week away from the Valley!

He was confused, his mind foggy and head painful as he tried to remember how he got there.

Pain shot up from his legs and through his bruised body. In his confusion he had tried to move again.

"Don't try to move, silly." He heard Little My scold him.

Weird, he thought, even in his confusion he could still notice the unusual tone of his sister's voice. She was still brash but there was a weirder note to it that he couldn't quite make out with his damaged brain.

"You're hurt." Moomin's gentle and concerned voice explained quietly, paw still stroking his hair. "You hurt your head and your legs. You shouldn't try to move."

Hurt? How did this happen? When? It would make sense to him if it was shortly after what he last remembered. But then... No. It didn't make sense either. If he had hurt himself before coming back to the Valley... How come he was resting in MoominHouse? Did it happen after he arrived? Maybe he went on an adventure with Moomin and the others and something happened? But then... Why couldn't he remember getting back in the Valley?

His head hurt like hell. He felt as if his brain was trying to force its way out of him by pounding on his skull. He was so confused. All of him hurt. His eyes blurred more again. The room was starting to spin. He felt truly sick, nausea hitting him like a bullet. He could feel himself sweating. His breathing picked up. Trying to breath became harder. He struggled to get air in his lungs.

He could distantly hear Moomin and Little My's voices calling out for him, trying to reassure him that he was alright, that he was safe now. He hadn't noticed that his eyes had closed.

Something left his head, leaving a horribly cold feeling where it had been. He shivered. Then, that thing came back. It was cold and wet on his forehead. He didn't like it. He felt so cold.

The voices grew more distant. He was wrapped in darkness again. His painful body becoming numb again. He was so very cold. He felt as if he was being pulled down into nothingness.

There was nothing. No pain. No cold. No voices. No light. Nothing.

Then, there was light again. The pain was coming back. The cold. A voice.

There was a weird taste in his mouth. Something was being said to him but he couldn't make out any of it. His mind was still filled with nothingness. He felt something being wrapped on his head, or maybe unwrapped he wasn't sure. If only his mind would let him focus on what he was feeling, what he was hearing.

Something warm was applied gently on the side of his head. A strike of pain was caused by the pressure. He instantly felt himself pull away from it, only managing to make the pain worsen.

"I know it hurt, dear." A new voice said distantly, sounding as if he was underwater or really far away on a rainy day. "But, you have to stay still. I have to clean the wound. It won't take long I promise."

'MoominMamma?' He wanted to call out to her. However, his mouth refused to move and he wasn't sure if he could even make any sound.

She rubbed something soft and warm against his painful skin. He felt too weak and hurt to move away this time.

"Good." She said, caressing his cheek with one paw. "It's done now."

He felt her arm slide under his shaking shoulders. Then, he felt himself being lifted carefully up, his back slowly leaving the comfort of the mattress. Something hot was brought up to his lips.

"I need you to drink this medicine." She said gently, holding the cup to his lips. "It will help ease the pain and your fever."

He drank it. It wasn't good. That taste again. Something else was put to his lips and he drank it as well. This one was sweet. A familiar taste in his mouth, washing away the bad one and bringing more warmth to his body.

"That's good." She said as her paw went to pat his hair. "Now, you should rest some more. Okay?"

He tried to hum in response, managing to make a quiet noise, but she knew that he had heard and would obey. Not that he could do much else. He hadn't even opened his eyes once. He had no energy to do so. The only thing he could do was let the darkness claim him again.

"Are you sure that he's going to be fine?" He could now hear a conversation next to him as he woke up again.

"Of course, dear. He just needs some time to heal and a lot of rest." He heard Mamma reassure Moomin quietly.

"But, he didn't even wake up completely once!" Oh. That voice. Little My? She sounded so worried, her voice shaky as if she was about to cry.

"I'm sure he will wake up soon." Mamma was trying her best to reassure them though Snufkin could feel something odd in her voice. Worry?

"Isn't there anything we can do to help him heal faster?" Moomin seemed worried too but even more, he seemed to be frustrated over something.

"I'm afraid all we can do is wait for him to get better." Mamma sighed. "But he's been getting better so it shouldn't be too long until he wakes up. Now, how about you two go play outside a little until we eat. I'm sure some fresh air would do you some good. And don't worry! Me and Pappa will keep him company in case he wakes up."

"But-" Moomin and Little My were about to complain when MoominMamma stopped them.

"If you keep staying inside and worrying like that, you'll get sick as well. And worrying won't solve anything. I'm sure Snufkin wouldn't want you two to worry that much. Knowing him, that would only make him uncomfortable and guilty. Now, off you go."

He could hear them mumble agreements before hearing faint sounds of footsteps leaving the room.  
MoominMamma knew him too well, he thought as he fell asleep again.  
'I'm sorry everyone'

When he woke up again, it was only to another conversation. There were more voices, they were less quiet than Little My and Moomin's, which was weird considering that Little My's voice would usually always be the loudest.

"Oh dear!" A girl's voice said, much too loud. He flinched, still half asleep.

"What happened!?" Another said, louder and with a high pitched voice.

He recognized these voices after some time. The girl was Snorkmaiden and the other one was surely Sniff. He wished silently for them to go away or to speak more quietly. His head hurt as their loud voices pounded around in his skull.

"Shhhh!" Little My and Moomin hushed them quietly.

"Don't be so loud!" Little My scolded quietly.

"Oh! I'm sorry" He could imagine Snorkmaiden putting her paws on her mouth as she apologized.

"But what happened to him?" Sniff asked a little quieter but still too loud for Snufkin's poor head.

"Be quiet!" Little My told him. Sniff made a noise, one Snufkin knew was caused by his older sister punching him.

"Little My..." Moomin sighed. "We don't know yet."

"But-" Snorkmaiden tried to say something but was cut off when he continued to explain.

"The birds led us to him after we woke up from hibernation. He was buried under a bunch of stones. He looked hurt and sick. And when I couldn't wake him up we carried him back home." Moomin's voice was getting quieter as he talked and Snufkin could imagine his ears flattening against his head.

Snufkin felt guilty for making his friends so worried and sad. He was causing them so much pain. He wished that he could just heal up already so they could be happy again, but, as he only wanted to go back to sleep and ignore their voices, he coughed violently. His throat hurt. It took him some time to stop. The coughing fit had made it hard for him to breath.

"Snufkin!" He could hear them approaching the bed where he was staying.

His name was called again and he had to try to open his eyes. He couldn't go back to sleep now that they knew he was awake. He couldn't make them worry more. He had to wake up.

He slowly forced his eyes to open. His vision was still blurry but it was better than what he could remember last. He looked up to meet their worried faces. He had been right all his friends were there.  
He wasn't sure how he should feel. So many people around him, in this tiny, closed, room. All these worried eyes looking down at him. He felt sick again as he was still struggling to breath.

"Snufkin, hey." Moomin said gently.

"Welcome back with us!" Little My grinned.

Something was off with her. Why did she force herself like that? She didn't have to do that for him. It only made him feel worse.

He wanted to say something but he couldn't even think about anything as he tried to get some air back in his lungs. If only he could breath.

"Did we wake you up?" Snorkmaiden asked nervously.

He thought about shaking his head to reassure her but it wouldn't exactly be true and the idea of even moving his head an inch was enough to make him feel sicker. He tried to take in some air, finally managing to breath a little better, and mouth the word 'No'. Of course, no sound came out, and he felt bad from lying like that but he didn't need more worry.

She gasped as she realized that he couldn't talk. Sniff seemed shocked into silence as well. They had never seen their friend so weak. Little My and Moomin exchanged silent glances. Moomin knew that Snufkin's voice was gone but he had hoped it would be back by now.

Snufkin closed his eyes again, too tired and feeling far too sick to keep his attention on them anymore. He felt as though he could throw up if he tried to focus too much. The nausea was getting worse the longer he stayed awake. His head was spinning again.

He heard them quietly wishing him to rest well before he drifted off to sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! I hope you like it so far!
> 
> Poor Snufkin, still suffering and all. Even Snorkmaiden and Sniff worried for him and came to visit :3  
> Hopefully he'll get better next chapter, right? :3


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whoops, totally forgot to update it last week-end. Sorry about that.
> 
> Anyway, here you go!
> 
> Enjoy!

Later he woke up again. He was drenched with sweat. His body hurt everywhere. His head felt like it was going to explode. He could feel something wet on his cheeks. He could hear himself whimpering.

Something was touching his hair. A paw.  
Something was being whispered to him. Reassurances.

After a few minutes where he tried to collect himself, to understand what was happening, he finally recognized Moomin's soft and sweet voice. He was trying to calm him, stroking his hair with his gentle paw.

"Shh. There. It's okay now." Moomin tried to sooth. "It was just a nightmare."

A nightmare? Yes. That made sense.

He opened his eyes slowly and looked up at Moomin. His eyes were still blurry but at this point he couldn't tell if it was from his condition or from the tears that were still rolling down his pale but flushed cheeks.

"Sorry." Moomin was quick to apologize, face blushing a little as he pulled his paw away from Snufkin's hair, leaving him shivering again. "You were having a nightmare. You- you seemed in pain and you were crying so I- I didn't mean to wake you up. I'm sorry."

He seemed really embarrassed for some reason, though Snufkin's foggy mind couldn't start to understand why. He wasn't doing anything bad. Why was he so embarrassed?

'It's alright.' He mouthed. He was amazed at how easily Moomintroll seemed to understand him even without any sound coming out of his mouth.

Moomin sighed in relief before his expression became full of concern again as Snufkin had another coughing fit. More tears fell down his cheeks as he desperately tried to regain his breath.

"I should go wake up Mamma! She'll make some medicine for your cough." Moomin said as he stood up from where he was kneeling next to the bed.

Snufkin felt a sudden wave of panic rise through his body. He moved without thinking, without even knowing what he was doing before he had done it. His hand grabbed Moomin's paw and squeezed tight, stopping him before he could leave. His eyes filled with more tears as he looked at him in the eyes. He was scared. He needed Moomin to stay with him.

Moomin looked at him, eyes wide in surprise. He had never seen such a look on his friend before. Snufkin's eyes held a quiet plea. He looked terrified. It wasn't right. Of all the things Snufkin was never showing to anyone, his fears were the first one.

He stopped himself and squeezed Snufkin's hand reassuringly, sitting on the edge of the bed. He gave him a small but gentle smile.

"Do you want me to stay?" He asked. He knew that he didn't have to ask but he wanted to be sure.

Snufkin nodded slowly, as to not make himself sick with the motion.

"Don't worry. I won't leave you." Moomin promised.

Snufkin let himself relax a little, his grip on Moomin's paw lessened a little but didn't let go of it. He was shaking, so Moomin readjusted the blanket so it covered Snufkin up to his chin. Then, Moomin moved his free paw to Snufkin's face, wiping away the tears from his cheeks gently with his thumb. He blushed slightly as he did this, but this time he didn't seem to care too much about being embarrassed.

"It's okay." Moomin hummed quietly. "I'm here. I won't leave you alone now."

Snufkin looked at him, his eyes already falling shut, berced by the quiet humming of the troll. Moomin's eyes were kind and there was a certain fondness in them as he caressed his cheeks softly. His presence and voice were soothing and reassuring. It made him feel safe and comforted. Whatever bad dream he had was already in the past, he couldn't remember it anyway.

Everything around him became background noises as he drifted back to sleep. He had no other nightmare that night, he had no dream at all in fact.

He woke up before Moomin the next day. He opened his eyes to find Moomin, asleep next to him. He had pulled the chair towards the bed and sat in it. He had fallen asleep, face on his arm on the bed and paw still holding Snufkin's.

Snufkin looked at him for a moment, smiling. There was nothing in his mind aside from fondness for his friend. Moomin looked so sweet when he slept. His paw was so warm against his hand. He could feel nothing but this comforting warmth.

It didn't last long. His body progressively woke up, bringing an increasing pain with it. If it wasn't for Moomin's paw holding his hand, he wasn't sure he could have dealt with the pain.

Now he could feel his legs again but they were so heavy, even as they laid there on the mattress, only his ankles were a little elevated by some cushions. They felt as if a dozen huge rocks were stacked on top of them. They were so painful. He even wished they had stayed numb.

His body wasn't much better, as the days had passed, the bruises had started to heal, as did the cuts, but he also had started to feel his body again and they were still painful. The more he was able to recover his senses, the more the pain would come back.

His head was the worst. The horrible pain from his wounded head that had yet to heal was almost impossible to deal with. It kept making it hard for him to focus on anything. The pounding in his head was so loud, sometimes it made it hard for him to hear people or noises around him. His eyes were so blurry sometimes that he couldn't make out anything or anyone unless they were right in front of his face. Trying to make them focus on anything would only manage to increase his pounding headache.

He still felt quite sick but for now the nausea was almost gone. He felt very cold again aside from his hand, although the blanket was warm, he still felt cold underneath it but it managed to keep him from shivering.

Despite spending all his time sleeping, he felt awfully tired, exhausted. He felt as though he hadn't slept in weeks. But he couldn't go back to sleep now and kept worrying about his friends.

His mind was starting to wake up. He wondered how he had ended up like this. What had happened to him? Why were his legs so heavy? How did he got hurt? Why couldn't he remember anything after he got around one week away from the Valley? He had been so close to home, how could he have gotten hurt on such a short distance? He tried to remember despite knowing that he would end up with his head hurting more. He could come up with nothing. He had a vague feeling, something that made his legs hurt even more. A feeling that something had been wrong. He had had to run away from something, or someone? He didn't know. The feeling in his legs hurt him. He had been running, that he was sure of it. But why?

A movement next to him broke him out of his thoughts. That's when he noticed he had started to struggle breathing again, his breath coming out heavy and uneven. His body was shaking but not because of the cold anymore. His cheeks were wet, tears rolling down on them without him having noticed before.

He was freaking out though he himself didn't know why. Something about remembering was making him scared enough to make him lose control of his emotions.

Moomin was awake now, already trying to calm him. His paw squeezed him tightly. His free one already back in his hair and stroking gently. He was whispering reassurances again.

"Don't worry." Moomin said gently. "I'm here. Nothing will happen to you. It's okay now."

Snufkin only started to cry more after he said that. Why was he so scared? Why did the idea of how he got hurt was so painfully terrifying?

He was so grateful for Moomin to be there for him. He was so grateful for having somewhere like MoominHouse to consider as 'home'. So grateful for all of them who could make him feel so safe. He knew that if anything came to happen here, they would be there and they would do their best to protect him if they had to.

There was another noise in the room. A rustling. Something was moving. He couldn't hear anything more over his own sobbing and breathing.

He could see Little My hopping on the bed. She looked at him and turned to Moomin.

"What happened?" He barely heard.

Her eyes were full of concern. He was sure her voice was too though he couldn't make it out enough to really know.

"I don't know." Came Moomin's worried voice. "When I woke up he was already freaking out and I don't know why."

Snufkin could feel the troll trying to hold down his own panic as he explained. Little My looked back at Snufkin. She seemed to think for a moment before she seemed to decide what she should do.

She made her way next to his head and started to pat it gently, making sure to not be in the way of Moomin's paw, still stroking his hair.

"You have to calm down." She said firmly but gently. Where was her usual brashness? "You're safe here. Now just try to breathe okay? In and out. Slowly."

She showed him how to do it and he tried to follow. It was weird for her to be this calm and concerned. She didn't rush him, letting him slowly calm his breathing. He did his best to keep his eyes on her the whole time, trying not to close them.

It took a long moment but he finally was able to stop sobbing, his breathing evened out again. They kept patting and stroking until his tears stopped falling.

"Now." Little My started, her expression serious but worried as her hand stopped, staying gently on his hair. "What happened to you? Why did you freak out?"

He looked away from them, embarrassed to even think of how scared he had gotten. How could he be so afraid of something he couldn't even remember? He felt so stupid.

"Come on." Little My pushed gently. "If you don't tell us, how can we help you?"

"She has a point Snufkin." Moomin spoke up. "If you really don't want to tell us, or if you still can't, it's okay. But, it would be easier for us to help you if we knew. AndAnd, maybe talking about it would help you feel better."

Snufkin swallowed, then sighed. They were right and he knew it. But the truth was even if he wanted to tell them, he was scared. He was scared of what he couldn't remember, was scared of trying to tell them and make them worry more. But, most of all, he was scared of trying to say it and not making any sound. If he couldn't talk then how was he to say it? What if he never had his voice back? Why was it gone in the first place?

He stopped himself before he could panic again. He turned his head back towards them, looking at his sister, then at Moomin. He should try, shouldn't he?

"You don't have to worry." Moomin reassured him as he noticed his hesitation. "You can tell us anything."

Snufkin nodded. He opened his mouth to speak, closed it before he could say anything. He tried again.

"I'm scared." His voice was so quiet he wasn't sure it even came out as he admitted his fear to them.

"What are you scared of?" Little My pressed a little but made sure to let him know, in the way she spoke, that it was fine if he didn't want to talk about it.

"I don't know." He sobbed quietly. "I can't remember."

"Is it from what happened to you?" Moomin suggested, his paw keeping a certain rhythm as he stroke his messy hair.

Snufkin wasn't sure how long his voice would stay as it was so very weak so he just nodded, squeezing Moomin's paw in his hand.

"It's okay. You're fine now. You're safe." Moomin tried to reassure him.

"Whatever happened to you, it's over, okay?" Little My tried as well. "You don't have to worry about it anymore. Nothing is going to hurt you here."

Snufkin nodded. Yes. They were right. What's the use of being scared of something from the past? What was important now was that he was recovering, slowly but still, and that he was safe in MoominHouse with his friends and their family.

Nothing could hurt him here. He was safe.

The whole freaking out thing had managed to make him even more exhausted but he still wanted their company.

"I think we should tell Mamma that he's awake." Little My said as she stood up on the bed.

Moomin agreed, nodding. She looked down at Snufkin's face and smiled at him before jumping off the bed and walking towards the door.

"I'll go tell her." She announced as she opened it. "I'm sure she'll have some medicine for him."

And then she was gone. Snufkin heard the door close behind her and distant footsteps. At least he could hear better today. And see better.

Moomin tapped his shoulder gently with one paw to get his attention back.

"How are you feeling?" He asked with a soft smile.

Snufkin stayed silent, not knowing what to say. Should he be honest and tell him how awful he feels? Or should he try to be reassuring without necessarily lying either?

"You can tell me you know. You can be honest."

Snufkin looked at Moomin with wide eyes. How did he know? Was he that obvious? Moomin laughed at his surprised look. A heartwarming sound. Snufkin hadn't heard his friend's beautiful laugh in so long. Something in his chest warmed up a little at the sound.

"Don't look so surprised." Moomin grinned. "We're best friends after all. And, I've known you for long enough to know how you are." He caressed Snufkin's cheek, blushing a little. "You don't have to lie to make me feel better. It will only make me more worried, you know."

Snufkin felt a little embarrassed himself. Maybe it was true that they've known each other for long enough to be able to read each other like opened books, but still, knowing that it was this easy for Moomin to read him was a little...

It was hard for him to admit, but he had never had anyone before he met Moomin and came to the Valley. He was always a secretive and lonely wanderer. He liked it that way. Nobody would bother him if they couldn't see how bad he was feeling.

Still, Snufkin somehow felt a little reassured to know that Moomin would know if he wasn't alright, and knowing the troll, he would do everything he could to cheer him up, or help him, without necessarily asking him directly what was wrong, and without making him feel suffocated by the way he cared for him.

Snufkin sighed, smiling a little to himself as Moomin continued to caress his cheek.

"Sick." He said after a pause long enough that Moomin was starting to think that he wouldn't answer the question. "Everything hurts." He looked up at Moomin to meet his eyes. The mumrik's eyes were full of pain, like the words themselves were painful to say.

Moomin felt sad to know how much pain his dear friend was in, but he also felt some kind of pride at his honesty.

"I'm sure Mamma will have some medicine to help you with the pain." He smiled warmly at him. "And maybe if you can tell us how sick you feel, she can make something for that too."

His paw left Snufkin's cheek rapidly as they heard a knock at the door. Snufkin shivered as the paw left him with a feeling of cold. Moomin called out to whoever it was to come in. Obviously it was MoominMamma and Little My.

MoominMamma was carrying a tray with two cups and a bowl of what was probably soup. Little My was carrying something too. She was carrying some clean bandages and pockets of ice.

"Hello Snufkin dear." MoominMamma said gently as she approached the bed and set the tray on the bedside table. "How are you feeling." She repeated Moomin's earlier question.

"He said he's feeling sick and that everything hurts." Moomin explained for him after a quick look at his friend for permission and a nod.

"I'm not surprised with such injuries and after staying under the rain for god knows how long." She said as she took Moomin's place on the bed.

Behind her, Moomin sat on the chair while Little My made her way across the room to put what she was carrying at the end of the bed and jumped next to it, sitting on the wooden end.

"What exactly are you feeling?" MoominMamma asked, waiting patiently for him to answer.

"Nauseous and cold." His voice was still much too weak but, thankfully, MoominMamma heard him.

"What else?" She pushed gently. "What hurt?"

"Everything." He said quietly and paused for a moment before elaborating. "Legs and head."

"How?"

"Head's pounding, legs heavy and painful." He kept his answers short, not caring about making real sentences. He wasn't sure, if he talked too much, if his voice would stay. "Eyes blurry. Dizzy."

MoominMamma hummed pensively, reaching out to take the tray. "It's not surprising. Your ankles are sprained and you have a big wound on your head that got a little infected from staying in the mud." She explained before turning to her son. "Moomin can you help him sit up a bit? I need to make him drink the medicine I prepared."

Moomin immediately hopped on his feet and hurried to lift Snufkin up carefully. Snufkin hissed as the pain spread through his body. Moomin apologized quietly, supporting him up as MoominMamma made him drink the medicine, then she gave him a cup of tea and made him eat his soup.

Snufkin wasn't exactly hungry, he felt too sick to eat but he knew better than to refuse to eat. He trusted MoominMamma to know what she was doing and he knew he hadn't eaten for some times. So, reluctantly, he ate it.

MoominMamma stroked his hair gently. "Good. The medicine will help lessen the pain and your nausea."

Then, she pulled the blanket off Snufkin's body. "I need to check on your injuries and change the bandages." She explained as she started to unwrap his ankles.

Snufkin was shocked to see his legs and ankles, still quite swollen and blue. He turned his head too look away. He must have turned it too quickly because his head is spinning again. He felt like crying all over again.

Moomin's paws tightened comfortingly on his shoulders. Little My making her way towards him and putting her little hands on his arm.

"It's okay. Don't be scared." Little My tried to reassure him. "Just keep looking at us okay?"

Snufkin nodded quietly, eyes already filled with tears, blurring his vision.

MoominMamma gave a quick and concerned glance to them before getting back to work. She checked his ankles, they were getting better but it was a slow process, then she wrapped them again with clean bandages. She put a pack of ice on each ankles before putting the blanket back over him to keep him warm, but mostly to hide the state of his legs.

"Now I just need to check your head and it will be over. Okay?" She said as she moved back to be closer to his head, reaching for the bandage that had started to fall a bit.

Snufkin nodded again and kept looking at his friends while she unwrapped his head. He was glad for them to be there as he needed the distraction to not feel the pain increasing as she applied a wet cloth to the wound. He winced, hissing quietly. The little hands on his arm squeezed a little to keep his attention on Little My and Moomin.

"I'm sorry, dear. It will hurt a little but I have to clean it." MoominMamma apologized as she rubbed the cloth against the skin around the wound to clean it. "It's almost done."

When the rubbing stopped, Snufkin noticed that he had closed his eyes. His cheeks were wet again.  
He opened them again and tried to keep focusing on his friends. His head was pounding more and it was still spinning. He felt sick again from the dizziness.

"There." MoominMamma smiled at him as she finished wrapping his head with a clean bandage. "It's over now."

She went on to stroke his hair gently before getting up. She motioned at Moomin to lay him back as she took the cloth that had fallen off his head earlier and dumped it in the bucket of cold water.

"Now we should let you rest." She said as she put it back on his forehead before turning to her son and Little My with a smile. "I'll be downstairs if you need anything."

With that she headed out of the room, her footsteps disappearing in the distance as she walked down the set of stairs. Little My and Moomin looked at each other for a moment before turning back to him.

"We'll live you to rest then." Moomin said with a gentle smile.

"Yeah. You go back to sleep." Little My agreed.

Snufkin felt panic rise in his body as they started to turn to leave. His instantly grabbed Moomin's arm. His grip was strong and shaky. The troll and little mymble looked at him.

"Don't leave." Snufkin pleaded without caring a second for how shaky it came out.

The idea of being alone at that moment felt so scary to him. He didn't want to go back to sleep yet, much less did he want them to leave his side. He knew it was selfish to ask them to stay when he knew they had stayed with him the whole time he was unconscious and delirious, but the fear of being alone after whatever happened to him was worse than the guilt he felt for not letting them go out and play, for making them worry over him, and for letting them see him so miserable.

"Do you want us to stay with you?" Little My asked hopping back on the bed next to him and kneeling in front of his face.

"Yes." He knew he sounded desperate and he hated showing himself like this to his friends, but he was just too scared to care, or to try and act calm about it.

"We'll stay then." Moomin said gently as he came to sit on the edge of the bed, Snufkin's hand still gripping his arm tight.

Snufkin tried to calm himself down, a little reassured that they would stay. His grip relaxed a little but he did not let go of his friend's arm yet. Moomin put a gentle paw on top of his hand and rubbed small circles on it to try to help him calm down.

"You should rest now." Little My said with a calm but firm voice.

Snufkin looked away from her, he didn't want to pout but he wasn't one to listen to orders, and he didn't want to go back to sleep yet. This time he felt more awake than the previous, despite his exhaustion. Even if he still felt quite sick and in pain, he wanted to spend some time with his friends.

"Would you prefer if we told you stories for a while?" Moomin sensed his reluctance to sleep and understood, somehow, what Snufkin wanted.

Snufkin turned his head back to him, eyes already answering his question. He nodded, slowly as to not make himself sicker than he already felt. Moomin gave him a big smile as he took his hand in his paw, hand finally having let go of his arm. Little My sighed but still smiled, she knew her brother wouldn't want to obey and go back to sleep after such a long time of just that. She knew how stubborn he was, but she was happy that he wanted them to stay and tell him stories.

"Fine." She sighed, but there was fondness in her voice despite how much she tried to hide it. "But we do all the talking. Alright? Don't want you to totally lose you voice again." She teased him with a small grin.

He smiled back at them, nodding. How lucky he was to have met them and to know they cared about him. He was grateful that they were ready to stay with him and keep him company while he was stuck in bed, despite how weird he was compared to the Snufkin they were used to seeing. He could cry again but this time, he wouldn't let the tears fall. Not when Moomin and Little My started telling him about that time where they had woken up from their hibernation and had spent some time in the snow and discovering MoominValley in winter.

Moomin and Little My seemed very excited to be telling him about their own winter adventure, and he was really happy to hear it. But, something kept bothering him as he listened. He kept thinking back on his own winter and on what could have happened to him. He tried his best to ignore it and focused on listening to his friends.

As Little My was arguing with Moomin, explaining how she had been so brave and amazing when she went out to see the Lady of the cold's face despite Too-ticky's warning, Snufkin felt his exhaustion come over him. He felt his eyes closing slowly as he tried to stay focused on their voices and within seconds he fell into a deep slumber.

Later, as they were dozing off, still watching over him as he slept, a sound startled them. A whimper. Snufkin's whimper. He was moving in his sleep, caught in another nightmare. Every move drew painful sounds out of Snufkin's mouth. His body wasn't moving too much as he was still too hurt to move it, but he was turning his head from one side to the other. He was crying again and he had trouble breathing. His face was drenched with sweat and flushed from the fever.

Moomin and Little My looked at each other with worry and made their way towards their friend.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading so far! I hope you like it so far!
> 
> Poor Snufkin, I really like to make him suffer to the point where he can be out of character with a good excuse for me X)


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, I did it again. I forgot to update this fic. Whoops.
> 
> Anyway here you go! Here's the next chapter!

Snufkin was stuck. He wanted to run away. To flee from his assailants, but he couldn't. They were gaining on him as he was paralysed. Feet stuck in place. They were almost there. He could feel their breath on his neck. But then, he fell. He felt the floor underneath him disappearing. He was falling in midair. Then, he was hitting something hard again and again. He couldn't- The pain was too much, he couldn't-

He woke up suddenly.

His whole body hurt. His head was throbbing intensely, making it impossible for him to get a grip of reality. His ears were ringing and he couldn't hear anything around him. His eyes refused to open more than half way and to focus on anything, making his vision a blurry mess.

"-fkin! It's alright. We're here."

He could finally hear a distant voice through the ringing. It was like being underwater. He could see blurry shapes, a white and big one and next to it a smaller one with ginger and red. Moomin and Little My.

His head hurt so much. The pain was unbearable. He could distantly feel sweat on his face, and tears rolling down on his burning cheeks. There was something else too. Something warm and painful on the side of his head as he turned it to face their friendly shapes.

"Little My go get Mamma!"

He awknowledged distantly Moomin's panicked voice commanding Little My to go find Mamma and get her back here, but his brain couldn't process the words.

A paw was put on his and he could barely hear the quiet reassurances his friend was saying gently. He noticed weakly that he couldn't breath, the pain so unbearable that he hadn't even noticed it before.

He wanted everything to stop. Wanted his head to stop pounding and spinning. Wanted the warmth and the pain from his face to go away. Wanted his body to stop aching so much. Wanted it to be warm and stop shivering. Wanted to be able to take a breath again. Wanted to stop crying.

He wanted to stop feeling everything.

A soft gasp followed by heavy and hurried footsteps.

A paw on his cheeks. Something leaving his forehead. Tiny paws on his arm as the paw holding his hand squeezed a little before leaving. He felt himself being lifted a little by a soft and warm arm behind his shoulders. He felt something being unwrapped from his head, something leaving progressively. When the thing was gone he could feel something roll down from the side of his head, the painful and warm sensation from before intensified.

He heard them all gasp. The sight must have been bad as he could feel the arm holding him slightly up shaking under him, as did the tiny paws on his arm.

Something cold and wet was applied against the painful side of his head. It felt so terribly painful. It was unbearable. The pain and the cold taking over his body as his eyes faded to darkness. Then he couldn't feel anything anymore.

"Mamma!" Little My cried, watching as her brother went limp against Moomin's arm.

MoominMamma said nothing, focusing on the task at hand. She needed to clean the wound that had opened up again and stitch it back together. The blood was still rolling on the side of his head.

"He'll be fine once I'm done with this and give him some medicine." She eventually said, feeling the insistent and worried eyes of Moomin and Little My on her.

"But he fainted again!" Little My continued as she looked at her brother's limp body, tears falling faster from her eyes.

"I know." She just replied trying her best to focus, not wanting to waste any minute.

"Little My..." Moomin was crying as well, big and fat tears wetting his soft white fur. "Mamma needs to focus."

Little My mumbled an apology, still watching her brother. She had never seen so limp.

She had never feared for his life even as he always went on his travels for months. There were times when he came back hurt or slightly sick. Of course, on those times she would worry about him, but she would never really show it as she knew he was back and safe in Moomin Valley, and would get better quickly under MoominMamma's care. But there he was, limp and almost lifeless in Moomin's arms as MoominMamma tried her best to take care of him.

Now more than ever before, she was scared. Scared that Snufkin wouldn't heal. Scared that he would keep getting worse until they couldn't do anything to save him. She was, for the first time since she met him and learnt that he was her lost little brother, afraid of losing him.

It had never really dawn on her, and she could tell it was the same for Moomin, that Snufkin could get hurt and killed on his adventures alone. Now the realisation was hitting them in full force, forcing the tears in her worried eyes to fall faster on the mattress of the bed as she continued to squeeze his arm, trying to be sure to let him know, even in his unconscious state, that she was there with him and that he would be safe, no matter what happened.

After that, Little My stayed silently watching as MoominMamma managed to clean and stitch his wound. It was hard work, but now that Snufkin had fainted, it was easier for her to work without worrying about him moving under her touch and hurting himself further.

Once she was done with her work, she sighed. Snufkin's condition was really worrying her. He wasn't getting better. Every time she thought that he was finally getting better, his fever going down and his face getting back some colors, something would happen and make him get worse instead. She wasn't sure what had happened this time as she had hurried in the room when Little My ran to her, begging her to come quickly, and as she hadn't taken the time yet to ask what happened to make his wound reopen like that.

"Mamma..." Little My looked at her, worry and tears pooling her usually sharp eyes.

"If he doesn't move he should be fine now." She explained quietly, sitting heavily on the chair as she motioned for Moomin to lay him back down against his pillow. "But, I'd like to know what happened." She said looking at Moomin and Little My.

"He was having another nightmare and he was tossing in his sleep." Moomin started to explain, wiping his own tears from his eyes. "We tried to wake him up but he wouldn't."

"When he did," Little My continued as Moomin sobbed quietly, "he looked like he was in a lot of pain. And it was like he couldn't see or hear us."

"And when he turned his head towards us," Moomin started again," we saw the blood on the bandage."

"I see." MoominMamma sighed again before standing up and pulling them both in a hug as they tried to stop crying. "He must have reopened his wound with all the movement, and the new loss of blood made him weaker and sicker."

"Oh, Mamma! He'll be alright, right? He'll get better?" Moomin whined in her arms.

"Of course, he will." She tried to reassure, rubbing their back slowly. "We'll just have to make sure that he doesn't move too much. We don't want him to make himself worse again."

They nodded as she pulled back, understanding her silent order to keep a close eye on him at all time. She stroked their head before approaching the bed again. She needed to check on his legs as he must have moved them in his nightmare if he had moved enough to reopen the wound on his head.

She pulled the blanket back, unlike the other times, Snufkin didn't move an inch. MoominMamma was really worried for him. He was really in a bad condition, much worse than when his friends had carried him back home. She hoped that he would be alright now.

She didn't voice her concern nor let any of it appear in front of the others. They were already far too worried and she was afraid that they would panic more if she let them see any of her worries.

Just like she had feared, Snufkin's legs and ankles, which had started to get better, had swollen again. She sighed as she sent Moomin and Little My to get some ice. They silently obeyed, not saying anything about the state of Snufkin's legs. They came back quickly with two pockets of ice, setting them down on each ankle as MoominMamma's instructions.

Still no reaction from the mumrik at the new and cold weight on his ankles. His unnatural stillness was making them all sick. MoominMamma pulled the blanket back over him, explaining to them to change the ice when it would be melting. She kissed their forehead before going to the kitchen. She had to find something to help Snufkin with his injuries and fever, but also to help him with his nightmares. If she could find a way to help him with the nightmares, maybe he could finally heal.

The next few days, Moomin and Little My took turns watching over Snufkin during the day. MoominMamma had decided to force them to go out to play with the others as she worried that they would get themselves sick with worry, staying inside all day and watching over their friend. They complained, of course, but she had convinced them to go out.

MoominMamma took over when night came, staying awake most of the night and waking up from time to time to check on him. Sleeping on a chair wasn't something she was found of, but when it came to taking care of one of her children, as she considered Snufkin as one, she didn't mind much.

MoominPappa had suggested taking turns with her during the night, but they all agreed that he would end up falling deeply asleep in a matter of minutes and forgetting what he was supposed to do. They had all laughed as Moomin and Little My made fun of him.

As for Snufkin, he seemed to be getting better, but it was agonizingly slow. Despite Mamma's best efforts and medicines, his nightmares were still frequent, forcing them to wake him up as soon as they noticed him starting to groan or stir.

He would wake up halfway, long enough for them to make him drink his medicine and some soup, but never all the way through. He would fall back in his deep slumber right after. He wouldn't do much but groan slightly at the pain when MoominMamma would check and clean his injuries and change his bandages.

They were all very worried for him, even as they could see him getting slowly better. The fact that he was still having horrible nightmare that made him groan and cry in his sleep until they woke him up, was a subject of concern for the family as they had to constantly make sure he wasn't showing any sign of being stuck in one, worrying that he would hurt himself again if they didn't noticed quickly enough. And the fact that he hadn't fully woken up even once for a few days, waking only halfway and making him quite delirious, was another.

Moomin and Little My would often ask MoominMamma about Snufkin's health. It was so slow for them, much too slow. She would reassure them that, as long as he got better, no matter how long it took, it was a good sign. It was hard for them but they accepted it.

When Snufkin did finally wake up again, it was with an extremely painful feeling in his whole body. He was breathing heavily, sweat mixing with tears on his cheeks. He felt so scared even though he couldn't remember why. His heartbeat was much too quick for it to be normal.

"Shhh... It's alright."

A voice next to him startled him. He noticed then that someone had been stroking his hair gently. He looked at the person next to him. His vision finally focusing on the white form, enough for him to recognize his best friend. It was Moomin, of course. How could he not have recognized his voice.

Snufkin closed his eyes, trying to get himself to calm down. Moomin's paw in his hair was soothing and soon, Snufkin was able to breath better again. He felt weak and his body was so painful, but at least now he could breath, and his heart wasn't beating to the point where he thought it would burst out of his chest anymore.

When he opened his eyes again, Moomin was still there, looking at him with a soft and reassuring smile. Snufkin noticed Moomin's tears as his eyes cleared out a bit more.

He tried to ask Moomin what was wrong. Clearly confused as to what was happening. But when he opened his mouth to speak, nothing came out. He was about to panic again as he realised that his voice was gone, when Moomin patted his hair gently, forcing him to look up at him again.

"It's alright Snuf. You'll be fine. Please don't panic. I'm here." His voice was quiet, or maybe it was just his head not registering his voice in his foggy mind. Still, he could hear the concern under the gentle and reassuring tone.

Snufkin calmed his breathing again, he hadn't noticed that it had become hard to breath again. He looked around him as he did so, confusion increasing as he noticed that he was in a bedroom in MoominHouse. He winced when he tried to move his legs only to feel an immense pain shot through him.

"Don't move! You'll hurt yourself!" Moomin scolded worriedly as he put a paw on Snufkin's cheek and tilted his head so he was looking at him. "You need to stay still. It's all going to be fine."

His thumb rubbed gently against his cheek, wiping his tears as Snufkin looked him in the eyes. His own dark brown eyes were wide and confused. He seemed to be having a hard time trying to understand what was happening, why he was in bed, hurting all over and mute, why he couldn't move and even why he was so scared.

"Do you not remember anything?" Moomintroll asked his friend nervously, worry increasing as he waited for Snufkin to answer.

As he feared, Snufkin shook his head slowly, groaning when the movement made his already strong headache increase to the point where he felt lightheaded, white dots blurring his vision. Moomin continued to caress his cheek as to remind him of his presence while he waited for his vision to come back to normal again.

Despite the shock of the realisation that Snufkin couldn't remember anything of the passed few days, Moomin tried his best to not show his own panic in front of his friend. He had to be strong, for Snufkin.

"To be honest, I'm not sure what happened to you." Moomin began to explain. "We found you, with Little My. You were at the base of the mountain under a bunch of stones. You looked like you fell from the mountain."

Moomin paused, letting the time for Snufkin to let the words sink in his confused and foggy brain.

"You were unconscious and hurt and we couldn't get you to wake up, so we carried you home. Mamma said that your ankles were sprained, maybe worse, and that you had a very bad concussion, and the wound got infected."

Snufkin gasped quietly as the sudden pain on the side of his head increased, reminding him of his wound.

"You keep having those nightmares and a few days ago you move so much in your sleep that you reopened your wound and made yourself worse."

Well, that explained a few things, thought Snufkin. That explained why he felt so bad and confused, and why he couldn't start to remember how he got here in the first place. That also explained why he felt so horrible and scared when he woke up, he must have had another of those nightmares.

"How are you feeling?" Moomin asked, forgetting that he couldn't really answer before realising and laughing softly. "Oh. Sorry, I forgot. You can't talk."

Snufkin could hear pain in his laughter, it made his stomach turn. He didn't want to be the cause of so much worry. Moomin and his family must have been taking care of him for a long time now. He must have worried them so much.

"Does it hurt that bad?" Moomin asked suddenly, moving the paw that rested in his hair to cup his cheeks, wiping the new tears.

Snufkin hadn't noticed he had started to cry again, his brain focusing more on the pain and his thoughts than the sensation of them rolling down on his sweating face. He was feeling so weak that he couldn't control his emotions. He nodded slowly.

"I'll go ask Mamma for more medicine." Moomin announced. He hesitated for a moment before leaning in and kissing his forehead. "I'm glad that you're finally awake." He said, voice shaking with emotion.

He stood up from the bed, letting go of Snufkin's face. This one shivered as his cheeks were left cold. And Moomin walked out of the room.

Distantly, Snufkin wondered how long he had been there and how long he had stayed asleep for Moomin to react like that. Almost impossibly, his chest felt warm at the thought of how much Moomin and his family cared for him, going through all the trouble to help him heal. His tears fell faster as he thought about how lucky he was to have met them, and how lucky he was that he had found such caring family that accepted him no matter what he was or what happened to him.

It wasn't long until Moomin came back with his mother. She approached the bed with a cup of medicine. Moomin helped him sit up a little, making him cry even more from a mixture of the pain and the emotion that came with Moomin helping him again. He drank the cup, finding that he felt quite thirsty. MoominMamma smiled at him once the cup was empty, caressing his cheek gently.

"It's good to see you awake, dear." She said gently.

Snufkin's tears continued to fall, her gentle tone and her paw caressing his cheek making him even more emotional. He felt embarrassed to cry in front of them but, it was only MoominMamma and Moomin, and he didn't have it in him to keep the tears from falling.

MoominMamma started questioning him, making sure to keep it to 'yes or no' questions. She asked him what hurt the most, if he was feeling nauseous or dizzy, if he remembered anything. She didn't have to ask him if he was still cold as, as her paw left his cheek, he started to shiver again.

She tried her best not to show her worry, increasing with each answer. She knew from what Moomin had told her, when he had come to find her, that he couldn't remember anything, but seeing it for herself was more unsettling.

"You should rest now." MoominMamma said as she stroked his hair when she was done with her questions. "Don't worry about anything. We're here."

Snufkin nodded. He had no way to argue anyway, and even if he could, he couldn't deny that he felt too weak and exhausted to do anything else but sleep. He closed his eyes, immediately drifting off to sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading so far. I hope you enjoy it so far.
> 
> I'm sorry for keeping forgetting to update it, I'll try to remember next week-end but I won't guaranty anyway since i know i might forget again.


	6. Chapter 6

Later that day, while he was still asleep, MoominMamma had a talk with Moomin and Little My on the subject of his health. They were obviously very worried about this conversation as they feared it meant something was horribly wrong with their friend. Of course, they knew he wasn't okay, but they had hoped he would only get better from now on since he had woken up the earlier and had answered their questions as best as he could. He had seemed a bit weak, and confused, for sure, but they thought that it would only get better now. That's what she always told them after all.

"What's wrong with him Mamma? Will he be alright?" Moomin asked, nervously playing with his tail.

"Did something happen again? Did he get sicker?" Little My sounded as nervous as Moomin, she didn't know yet about his loss of memory.

"Now, now, children. Calm down. He's going to be fine." She reassured quickly.

"Then what's wrong?" Little My asked, obviously frustrated with the situation.

"Calm down, My." MoominMamma sighed. "I just need to warn you about his concussion."

The two sets of eyes stayed silently staring at her. She could see how much they were worrying, and she couldn't blame them, after all, she was very worried too and it was hard not to show it. She knew how hard it had been for them to see Snufkin in this condition and seeing how bad he was after he reopened his wound, it wasn't surprising that they would only be more nervous when she wanted to talk to them about him.

"His concussion is making him very confused for now. He doesn't remember anything about how he got here, or about what happened to him." She paused for a moment before continuing. "Or anything that happened the last few days."

"What? But he seemed to be better until now! And he talked with us too before he reopened his wound." Little My cried.

"I know My, I know." She sighed again, understanding the little mymble's frustration. "But his concussion is quite serious. It's not something that can heal in one night. He'll need a lot of time to get back to his senses. And I'm afraid that when it reopened it only made him worse."

"Are you saying that he will continue to forget everything until he's finally healed?" Moomintroll asked, his voice shaking as worried tears filled his eyes."How long will it last?"

"I can't know how much he'll be able to remember for now. And I'm afraid, I don't know for sure how long it will take to heal, Moomin. But I will try to find if there is any medicine in GrandMoomin's recipe book that could help him get better faster." She tried to reassure, putting a gentle paw on her son's shoulder.

"So it means he won't remember anything that might happen today or tomorrow?" Little My questioned. "He won't remember anything we told him?"

"I can't know for sure Little My. All I'm saying is that he is very confused and doesn't remember most of the things that happened. It doesn't necessarily mean that he won't remember anything at all, though he might not understand what happened. Either way, you'll have to be careful and patient with him. Okay?"

"Okay." The two of them agreed, looking up at the bedroom door with worried eyes.

"Mamma?" Moomin turned back to her.

"Yes dear?"

"What about his legs?" He asked. "Will it be healed soon? Will he be able to walk soon?"

"They will need at least one more week or two, I think." She said thoughtfully. "It will take some time, even after they're healed, for him to walk again. You might need to help him with that for a bit."

There was silence for a moment. Moomin was already thinking about how upset his friend will be when his head gets better and he'll understand that he can't go anywhere on his own. It broke his heart just thinking about it.

"What do you think could have happened to him, Mamma?" Little My asked suddenly, Moomin and MoominMamma looked surprised at how low and unsure her voice seemed.

"How would I know?" MoominMamma sighed sadly.

"But, you've seen his injuries!" Little My exclaimed. "Surely, you must have an idea of what could have happened to cause them!"

"Well I do have some theories but they're just that, theories." MoominMamma replied, not sure if she should tell them or not.

"I want to know!" Little My exclaimed.

"Even if they're just theories, maybe it can help us understand what could have happened to him so we can help him better." Moomin agreed.

"Fine." MoominMamma sighed before stroking their head with her paws. "You really want to help him, don't you?"

"Of course!" They exclaimed.

"Well, I've never seen anything like his injuries before, to be honest." She started. "I don't think that all of his injuries are from the fall and the avalanche. That might have made them worse but I think some were already there, although his concussion is definitely a result of that." She looked at them before continuing. "I think he must have been running away from something for quite a long time to get his legs in this poor state. I've never seen legs as swollen before. And his sprained ankles were probably a result of him running for a long time and probably tripping on the way."

"But what was he running away from?" Little My asked a little too loud.

"How could I know, Little My. I wasn't there." MoominMamma noted. "And, like I said before, those are only theories. I might be wrong on the whole thing, who knows."

"Still. I don't like the idea of him running away from something." Moomin said quietly, still playing nervously with his tail. "But, it would explain why he was so afraid of what happened even though he still can't remember it. It must have been something horrible to make him run away and end up like that. And still be scared of it."

"Yeah... I don't like that he's so scared of whatever happened." Little My mumbled. "He's never scared."

"I don't think that's true, My." MoominMamma said quietly. "And I'm sure you know it. He has to be scared too sometimes, he just doesn't show anyone."

"I know. But, he never shows it and now he's freaking out so easily!" Her voice went from a quiet mumbling to a frustrated cry.

"I know dear, I know." MoominMamma pulled them both into a comforting hug.

She rubbed their back comfortingly for a moment before finally pulling back with one last stroke on their head.

"Now, how about you two go back to keep an eye on him, in case he wakes up again, while I go search if I can find anything that could help him?" She smiled at them.

The two nodded quickly before running up the stairs and to the guest bedroom. She watched them disappear in the room before she went to the kitchen where she had left the book.

Snufkin was still sleeping as they came back into the room. Moomin went back to the chair and Little My hopped on the bed, far enough away from the mumrik as to not wake him up from the movement. She sat facing both Moomin and Snufkin.

Little My was wearing a sad and worried expression as she kept looking at her little brother. He seemed to be in a deep slumber but he was still shaking under the blanket. A pained expression on his pale and tired face. He looked so weak and defenceless.

"What's wrong, My?" Moomin asked with worry, he was as worried as her for Snufkin but seeing her like that made him worry for her as well.

"I don't like how weak he looks." She sighed. "And I hate how confused he looks when he wakes up."

"Me neither." Moomin agreed quietly, looking at the mumrik as well.

"And he looks like he's in so much pain!" She was almost crying now. "I wish he could get better already."

Moomin silently nodded along. He could understand what she was feeling, to be honest, he felt the same way. He felt powerless.

His mind kept imagining scenarios where Snufkin was running away from horrible people or even animals. He could hear him panting as he ran through a forest and through the mountain path. He could imagine him tripping over his own feet in his hurry, falling to the ground and getting to his feet to continue running. He could imagine his terrified expression as he ran endlessly from whatever was following him.

"If I could I would make whoever is responsible for this pay." Little My broke him out of his thoughts with her sad but angry voice.

"I don't think Snufkin would be okay with that." Moomin sighed, internally agreeing with her.

"I don't care! I want to make them pay!" Little My said angrily, turning her face towards him, tears rolling on her cheeks. "Don't tell me you don't think the same!"

Moomin swallowed, he knew she was right. "I-" He sighed. "Yeah, I think the same." He admitted, looking down at the floor. "But, I'd much rather have him get better instead."

"I didn't say I didn't want him to get better." She mumbled, calming down a little. "But I hate that I can't do anything to help out." She admitted, rubbing her eyes with her sleeves.

"You're helping." Moomin contered. "At least, I want to think that we're both helping." He continued more quietly.

Little My didn't say anything more. She looked up at him and gave him a small smile, nodding. He was himself ready to cry but he rubbed his eyes to stop the tears from falling.

They stayed watching quietly over Snufkin for the rest of the day, hoping that he would wake up again. To their disappointment, he didn't, and they went to bed, on MoominMamma's order, with heavy and disappointed hearts, filled with worries for their friend.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoy this fic so far!
> 
> I'm sorry i keep forgetting to update so i won't say when will be the next one, i'll try to do it on monday or maybe tuesday but i won't guarantee that i will actually do it because i might forget about it just like i've done so far.
> 
> Anyway thank you for you patience!
> 
> What could have happened to Snufkin? Who knows? :3c


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A little late but here, have the next chapter.

He was shivering again. His body was heavy and painful again. Something cold was back on his head, a drop of water slowly dripping on his face. His eyelids were heavy but he tried to open them. The light from the room, although there wasn't much, was enough to blind him for a moment, making his head ache more.

When he could finally see again, he was back in MoominHouse, in the guest room bed. MoominMamma was with him, she was taking care of his ankles although he couldn't feel it. The blanket was pulled back, leaving him cold and shivering.

He coughed, making his body tremble. MoominMamma stopped what she was doing to come rub his shoulder. When he could breathe again, she smiled at him gently.

"Good Morning, dear." She said. "I'm sorry if I woke you up."

"Is fine." He said, still struggling to breathe a little and shaking.

"I know you're cold dear, but I'm almost done. You just have to wait a little more. Okay?" She explained, wiping the drop that was rolling down on his sweating face.

Snufkin nodded slowly, he felt very weak for some reason. What was wrong with him? Why was he here? He couldn't remember. What had happened to his ankles, his legs, his head? Why was he in MoominHouse again? Everything was so confusing and fuzzy.

"What's wrong, dear?" She asked as she pulled the blanket back over him.

"What happened... to me?" He asked looking up at her with confused eyes.

She frowned at him, worry written on her face. She sat down next to him, facing him.

"You don't remember, do you?" She asked gently, he shook his head. "Do you remember when you woke up yesterday?" She continued, frowning again when he shook his head after thinking for a moment.

"What wrong with me?" He asked, confusion and fear rising.

"It's nothing dear. It's okay." She tried her best to reassure him, seeing him beginning to panic. "You got hurt on your way back from your trip south and Moomin and Little My found you and took you home. You have a pretty good concussion. That's why you don't remember."

He looked at her for a long moment, thoughts slow as he tried to process her words in his foggy and pounding head. She caressed his cheek with one of her paws, smiling reassuringly at him.

"It's alright, Snufkin. You'll remember when you'll get better." She explained gently. "Now you should rest some more."

Without another thought, he obeyed, too tired and weak to protest. He closed his eyes again, falling immediately back to sleep. He didn't hear her as she went out the door and let Moomin come in and settle next to him soon joined by Little My.

MoominMamma smiled as she watched the mumrik sleep peacefully. She retrieved her paw before turning to look at her son. Moomin, who had arrived at the end of the discussion and was peeking his head through the door. He seemed a little relieved but still worried, playing with his tail.

"Don't worry, dear." She said as she approached him, putting a gentle paw on the fur between his two ears. "Now he should only get better. But we'll still have to make sure he doesn't hurt himself in his sleep."

"Do you really think he'll get better now?" Moomin asked nervously.

"Of course!" She smiled reassuringly at him. "You saw him. Now that he woke up he'll be fine."

Of course, she had no way of telling if it was true, he could still get worse again if they weren't careful. But, she had the feeling that everything would be better now. She knew it inside of her. And Snufkin was being watch at all time of the day and night. He would be fine now. They just had to be a little more patient. Hopefully he would even remember what just happened when he would wake up again.

"Now, how about I tell Little My to come give you company while you look after him?" She asked calmly.

Moomin nodded. He didn't necessarily want Little My to come as he would like to be alone with his friend but, Snufkin was sleeping again, and Little My would certainly want to come anyway once she knew he had woken up again.

MoominMamma kissed his forehead before going to find the little mymble. Once he was alone with his sleeping friend, Moomin approached the bed, sitting on the edge. He played absentmindedly with Snufkin's hair, getting it out of the mumrik's sweating face. How he wanted to talk with his friend, to hear him talk about his winters adventures with a wide and passionate smile. He sighed. He missed his friend so much. Missed spending good time with him, going on adventures, just the two of them in the night to avoid the other, though it was hard to avoid Little My who would often find a way to follow them everywhere.

"So he woke up again?" Little My spoke up, approaching the bed and hopping on it. "You could have told me before." She pouted.

Moomin immediately stopped playing with Snufkin's hair, putting his paw on the bed instead. His face was pink with embarrassment. He hadn't heard her come in and close the door.

She looked at him, tilting her head to the side in question. She wasn't sure why the moomin was so embarrassed. He had been touching Snufkin's hair and face a lot ever since he found him, but she understood why, he was so very worried for him and it wasn't often that he could show so much affection for him. Besides, she had done that a lot too.

Something clicked in her mind. She grinned, a big and knowing smile. He looked back at her with a different kind of worry that she had seen in his eyes for a week now.

"Ooooh." She mocked him. "So you do love him, don't you?"

Moomin's face went from a slight pink to a dark red, covering his entire face and his ears.

"You're in love with my brother!" She started to sing teasingly.

"Oh! Shut up My!" Moomin scolded, trying to keep his voice quiet. "You'll wake him up!"

"Oh come on! What would that do? I'd just get to talk to him without having to wait for hours." She complained but kept her voice quiet.

"You know that he needs to rest." Moomin crossed his arms, trying to compose himself.

"I know." She pouted.

Moomin sighed, at least she was trying to stay quiet.

"Sooo." Little My started again, a teasing grin on her face again. "Did you tell him yet?"

Moomin blushed again, almost choking when he tried to swallow, which made Little My laugh.

"No" He mumbled quietly. "How could I?"

"Come on! It's not that hard!" She mocked, putting her hands on her hips. "You just have to tell him that you have something to tell him and you just say it. 'I love you.' And boom. It's done."

"You obviously never had to do it before." Moomin huffed. "It's not that easy."

"Well, maybe, but still. It's obvious that he loves you too. You have nothing to lose." Her voice was strangely sympathetic compared to her usual brashness.

"You don't know that." Moomin argued, nervously playing with his tail again. "What if he doesn't love me? What if I scare him off? What if he decides to not come back next spring?"

"You really are oblivious Moomin, just like him." She sighed. "He always come back, no matter what happened between you before. Remember that time when you fought just before he went on his trip? What happened then?"

"He came back..." Moomin answered quietly.

"Exactly!" Little My smiled gently. "And you know that he only comes back because of you, right?"

"I suppose he does."

"Then you should know that you won't scare him off so easily!"

"But still, it's not like a stupid fight this time." He argued. "It could ruin our friendship."

"But, it won't!" She said with confidence. "Because he loves you."

"How would you even know?" Moomin huffed.

"Because he's my brother and I know him. And because unlike you I'm not oblivious and I see how he acts when you're around." She explained quite proudly but with a fond exasperation in her voice.

Moomin looked at her, inspecting her expression for any sign of a joke but for once she seemed to be honest. He blushed a little before he sighed.

"Anyway, now I can't tell him."

"And why is that?" She huffed.

"Because he's hurt Little My!" He covered his mouth with his paws when he realized that he spoke a little too loud.

"What does that have to do with you telling him about your feelings?" She asked, not understanding his point.

"Don't you remember what Mamma said last time?" Moomin looked at her with sad eyes. "She said that he couldn't remember anything that happened even since we brought him here?"

"Well, yes. But, he's getting better now. Maybe he will."

"But we can't be sure, not as long as he's still concussed."

"See the good part of it Moomin." She smiled mischievously.

"Is there really a good part?" He frowned.

"If you tell him and it doesn't work out, if he can't remember the next time he wakes up it's all good. It'd be just like you never told him anything."

"That would be horrible Little My!" Moomin cried.

"And it won't happen because, as I keep telling you, he loves you!"

Moomin stayed silent, the words refusing to sink in his brain. She seemed so sure that Snufkin felt the same way, but he just couldn't believe her. Snufkin had always been so reserved and distant. He always refused physical attentions and didn't like being the center of attention. He always preferred to stay by himself, though he would often go on adventures with Moomin and their friends or just lay with them, talking and making flower crowns, or playing his harmonica for them.

Moomin was scared that Snufkin wouldn't really feel the same. Or maybe, that even if he really did feel this way for Moomin, he would be scared of it. Moomin knew how much his friend hated to feel trapped or tied down, and he thought maybe this kind of relationship would be too much for him.

"I don't want to make him feel trapped." He admitted more to himself than to Little My.

"Moomin!" Little My sounded annoyed. "If you never made him feel trapped until now, do you really think that it would change because of that?"

"But he hates to-" He wanted to argue but Little My cut him off.

"It won't." She said firmly. "I know you two well enough to say that it won't happen. You can't make him feel trapped. It's not in your nature Moomin."

They would have continued to talk and argue on the matter but Snufkin started to stir. His expression was pained and his breathing uneven, like every time he was stuck in one of his nightmare.

Little My was the closest to him. She started to shake his shoulder gently, stroking his hair with her other hand.

"Snufkin. Wake up! It's just a nightmare."

Moomin approached to take the mumrik's paw in his, rubbing little circles on his palm.

It worked. Snufkin slowly woke up. He looked confused for a moment, still half dreaming.

"It's alright Snuf. You just had another nightmare." Moomin reassured as Snufkin's eyes landed on him.

It took a moment but eventually Snufkin was awake enough to calm himself down and take slow breaths. Little My and Moomin kept reassuring him that he was safe until they were sure he was fine.

"Do you remember where you are?" Little My asked suddenly.

Snufkin seemed to think for a moment before nodding. Little My sighed in relief. She took her hands away from him, putting them on her lap as she sat in front of him.

"Do you remember what happened earlier when you woke up?" Moomin asked nervously before she could even think of it.

To his relief, Snufkin nodded, squeezing his paw in his in an attempt to reassure him. Moomin couldn't stop the smile that spread on his face. The news that he could remember something that happened earlier was a good sign.

Mamma was right, Moomin thought, he really will get better now.

"How are you feeling?" Little My asked.

"Are you feeling any better?" Moomin asked at the same time.

"Better." Snufkin managed to say, his voice quieter than a whisper but still loud enough that they could hear him.

"Good." Moomin beamed at him, relief flooding him.

"You should go back to sleep." Little My suggested, although it sounded more like an order than a suggestion.

Snufkin shook his head. They could read in his eyes that he was still scared of whatever his dream was. Moomin squeezed his hand to try to reassure him.

"It's okay Snuf. But My is right. You need to rest."

His only answer was Snufkin's pleading eyes locking onto his own. There was no way he could force him to go back to sleep when he gave him such look. My turned to look at Moomin and their eyes met, a similar worry in her own eyes.

"Fine." She sighed. "How about this? We tell you some stories and you try to rest?"

Snufkin looked at them before nodding, relaxing a little.

Moomin and Little My spent the next hours telling him stories, some that they knew he already heard but didn't mind hearing again and some they had told him about that they knew he had forgotten. It took a long time but, eventually, he fell asleep, paw still holding Moomin's and not ready to let it go.

Little My looked as they connected hands and smiled teasingly at him.

"If you tell me, after that, that you don't think you should tell him, I don't see what else could prove you that I'm right." She said pointing at their connected paws. "Did you see the way he looked at you?"

"Oh hush!" Moomin blushed, squeezing absentmindedly Snufkin's hand. "Don't start again. It's not the right time for any of that."

"Sure." She huffed. "Well if you don't tell him once he's better enough to go out again, I will!"

"What? No!" Moomin stiffened. "Don't you dare!"

"What? It gives you plenty of time to tell him until then." She laughed. "Okay, fine. I'll give you one more week. But as soon as that week is done I'll still tell him. You'd better tell him before I do." She smiled mischievously.

Moomin groaned, annoyed that she would even think of telling Snufkin before he could, but internally glad that she was supporting him, even though he would prefer if she wouldn't push him so much.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading so far, I hope you like it.
> 
> I'm sorry, I kinda forgot to update as I was too into my whumptober fics. I'll try to remember next week but I can't guarantee that I will remember. (If you're interested in some whumps I did a series for whumptober of Moomins fics :3)


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I honestly don't remember if I posted last week or not, so I'm sorry if I didn't :/

For the next few days, Moomin and Little My kept company to the mumrik, waking him up when he would start to stir in his sleep or groan, and telling him stories when he wouldn't want to rest until he fell asleep again. MoominMamma continued to take care of him in the night and the morning, checking his injuries every day and giving him soup and medicine.

She was very positive about his condition. He had been getting better ever since they started to watch over him and wake him up as soon as he appeared to be trapped in a new nightmare. Those still came regularly, there was rarely a time when they wouldn't have to wake him up from one before he hurt himself again. It was one of the things that worried MoominMamma the most, that and his concussion.

The infection seemed to be better, the wound finally healing properly even though it was still slow. His legs were finally back to their normal size though his ankles were still a little swollen. The fever from the mix of the cold he had caught from being unconscious under the rain for a long time, and the infection were gone, and he seemed to feel less cold. His voice was slowly coming back as long as he didn't talk too much.

Little My kept calling Moomin out on his love for Snufkin with every touch or sign that he or Snufkin would give each other. Moomin tried to ignore her every time she would tease him but could never stop himself from blushing.

"Oh! Good Morning Snufkin! You look so much better than last time!" Snorkmaiden said as she entered the room.

Snufkin was sitting in his bed, talking with Moomin and Little My. Snufkin seemed to be doing much better. His face had some colors back and wasn't flushed anymore. He still had big and dark bags under his eyes and an exhausted and painful look on his face.

They all turned to look as Snorkmaiden and Sniff came in. Moomin and Little My seemed like they didn't know they would show up.

"What are you two doing here?" Little My asked with her usual brashness.

"When was last time?" Snufkin whispered to Moomin as he couldn't remember.

Moomin explained to Snufkin their last encounter while the others were talking.  
Snorkmaiden glanced at Moomin and Snufkin as she explained why they were there. They hadn't seen the two of them for weeks, so they thought they ought to come see how they, and Snufkin, were doing. Little My scolded them for not at least knocking on the door before inviting themselves in, mocking Sniff as he complained that they didn't have to come and that they should be happy they did.

While Little My and Sniff argued, Snorkmaiden made her way to the bed, playing with her tail in a manner similar to the moomintroll.

"Do you really not remember last time?" She asked Snufkin nervously as this one looked up at her.

Snufkin shook his head, avoiding looking at her in the eyes. Moomin smiled at him with compassion, patting his hand.

"How are you feeling today?" She asked, sitting in the empty chair next to the bed.

"He's getting better." Moomin cheered.

"But it's slow." Snufkin sighed, smiling sadly at Moomin.

"Stop complaining, Snufkin! You're getting better! You should be happy about it!" Little My, who seemed to be done arguing with Sniff, scolded, jumping back on the bed in front of him.

"But it's been weeks." He sighed again.

"Well, at least you feel better, no? That's an improvement!" Snorkmaiden tried to cheer him up as well, receiving a thankful smile from Moomin when she glanced at him.

She didn't have to ask, she knew what was going on. They must have come at the wrong time. Snufkin seemed to be feeling a bit depressed. Having to be stuck inside for so long and in his condition was obviously hard for him. He still looked so weak and restless, and she could see him wince every time he moved a little.

"How is your head? And your legs?" She continued to ask, trying to avoid upsetting her friend.

"It's still painful." He kept his answers short as his voice was still quiet.

"Mamma said it could still take a few weeks before his injuries heal." Moomin explained quietly, squeezing Snufkin's paw gently.

"You must be bored to death staying inside all day! How boring!" Sniff complained.

Snufkin tried his best not to glare at him, but they could all, beside Sniff, see how irritated this comment had made him. Little My was ready to yell at him for being so reckless but Snorkmaiden intervened before she could say anything.

"Did we tell you what happened last time?" She said, clasping her paws together in an attempt to look cheerful.

"No. What happened?" Moomin asked curiously, knowing exactly what she was trying to do.

She went on to talk about her brother and his inventions, how they had assisted him when he needed to test some new dispositive for his flying ship. She continued with how Sniff and her spent some time going around in the valley and helping some of its inhabitants.

She did her best to keep Snufkin's mind off of his condition, to try to relax him a little. And to Moomin and Little My's relief, it seemed to work. Snufkin was very quiet, but they could read it on his face. Snufkin, himself, was thankful for how much she tried to cheer him up and to stop Sniff from saying anything else that could irritate him.

They stayed until dinner, inviting themselves at the table as well, which wasn't a problem since it wasn't unusual and the Moomins parents were always welcoming anyone who wanted to stay. Sniff immediately ran downstairs when they were called to eat, soon followed by Little My. Moomin said he would eat with Snufkin and would bring him his food as he started to head downstairs. Snorkmaiden was left alone with Snufkin, which wasn't something either of them was used to.

"I'm sorry for earlier." She sighed as she sat on the bed.

"For what?" Snufkin asked, a little confused.

"For Sniff, mostly." She laughed a little. "And for coming uninvited too. I didn’t mean to make you feel bad."

"Oh. You don't have to apologize. It's okay." Snufkin sighed, trying to give her a small smile.

"I still think I should." She shook her head. "This situation must be hard for you."

Snufkin looked at her, a little confused over what she was trying to do. He couldn't see why she should apologize while it was him who was on the nerves because of everything. It wasn't her fault. In fact, it had nothing to do with any of it. She was even trying to help him, and he was thankful for that.

"Yes. It's been hard." He admitted after a short silence. She looked at him, clearly letting him elaborate if he wanted. "It's just frustrating." He sighed again, continuing. "I hate being so weak. I can't do anything other than sleep or stay in bed. Just the fact of moving hurts. And every time I wake up I'm always feeling so horrible... It takes so long for me to remember where I am and why I'm here. I hate being stuck. I hate all of this."

He rubbed his eyes quietly as he felt tears filling them again. How he hated to be so weak and powerless in front of others.

"You're doing fine. You'll soon be able to go out again. You'll see." She smiled softly, putting a paw on his shoulder, trying to comfort him a little. "And I'm sure, knowing you, that you'll enjoy even more being outside again once you're better."

"I suppose." He said, looking back at her. "I really hope you're right and I'll be better soon."

"Of course I am!" She cheered. "I just know you will."

Moomin came into the room with a tray of food for the two of them and cups of tea and medicine. He thanked Snorkmaiden for keeping company to the mumrik. As she went to stand up, she gave one last squeeze to Snufkin's shoulder and a gentle smile. He smiled back at her, it was small but sincere and thankful.

"What were you two talking about?" Moomin asked as he settled down next to his friend.

"Nothing special." Snufkin replied. "I suppose she just wanted to cheer me up a bit."

"And did it work?" Moomin smiled as he handed his plate to Snufkin.

"Maybe a little." He admitted with a slight blush.

"It's good to hear." Moomin chuckled, patting Snufkin's head gently. "Now let's eat! I'm sure that will cheer you up even more!"

Snufkin nodded, starting to eat his plate of fish stew. Mamma had decided that Snufkin could try to eat something more solid now that he seemed to be getting better, and she had been happy to make Snufkin's favorite recipe for the occasion.

Once they were done eating, Moomin set the tray on the bedside table. They could still hear the others chatting downstairs, and it was safe to assume that they weren't done eating yet.

"We still have some time before Little My comes back." Moomin said, sounding almost shy.

"We should appreciate it while it lasts then." Snufkin smiled.

"Are you feeling any better now?" Moomin asked suddenly, nervously.

"Yes. I'm sorry about earlier." Snufkin quickly reassured and apologized. "I didn't mean to be so cold."

"You don't have to apologize for anything!" Moomin quickly countered him. "I know how hard it is for you."

Snufkin didn't look at him, playing with the blanket quietly. Moomin picked on what was wrong and wrapped his arms around him, pulling him closer to him, so he was leaning against his shoulder.

"Don't worry. It'll get better." Moomin promised, kissing his forehead as Snufkin melted in the embrace.

"I just wish I could be back to normal again." He sobbed quietly.

"Shh. You'll be alright." Moomin rubbed the back of his head. "You just need to be patient. You'll be fine soon."

"I can't stay here forever." Snufkin complained, burying his face in his friend’s shoulder despite the pain from the movement. "I don't want to keep being a burden."

"Now, Snufkin, don't say things like that." Moomin pulled him back, putting a paw on his cheek and forcing him to look at him in the eyes. "Nobody thinks of you as a burden. We all love you and care for you."

"But I keep worrying you all." Snufkin whined, tears falling faster. "I'm supposed to be able to take care of myself on my own but now I can't even move. I'm stuck here and you have to put up with me and all my nightmares."

"We worry about you because we care, Snufkin." Moomin said firmly but gently. "We know you can take care of yourself. It doesn't mean that you don't have the right to let others help you when you need it. And you're hurt, it's not like you want to be stuck here."

"But-"

"And you're not a bother at all. I'd hate myself if I knew that you were suffering outside alone and that I couldn't do anything to help you." He continued, not letting the mumrik argue until he was done.

Snufkin stayed silent, his eyes still locked with Moomin's, still crying silently. Moomin's paw was getting soaked, but he didn't seem to care, caressing lightly his cheek.

"You'll never, ever, bother us. Not when you need help, not if you just want some company." He pulled Snufkin back against him, leaning his head on Snufkin's. "I- We'll always be there for you."

Snufkin found that he couldn't say anything else. He knew inside of him that Moomin was sincere, despite his brain trying to convince him otherwise. As he cried on Moomin's shoulder, the exhaustion from his condition, from the day spent with others and the delicious meal Mamma had made for him, he started to doze off against his friend.

The last thing he acknowledged as he fell asleep in Moomin's arms was a kiss in his hair and a gentle whisper in his ears, wishing him a good night and sweet dreams. The fur against his face made a good pillow and soon he couldn't hear or feel anything.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading, I hope you like it so far.
> 
> Hopefully I can remember to update next week but I'll do it eventually any so don't worry.


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm back!
> 
> Sorry for dying for a whole month ;_;

His legs were painful. He was exhausted. His body numb. He couldn't even feel the ground under his boots with each hurried step he took. His lungs were burning. It was so hard to breath. His face hurt.

He looked behind him as he continued to run. They were still behind him. They were getting close. Too close. He had to go faster. He couldn't collapse now. If he could continue for a few more hours, maybe they would get tired and give up.

He continued to run. Faster than he had ever run before. Never stopping.

At some point, he lost track of time. He knew he was still running away from them but, he couldn't tell for how long he had run. He couldn't feel anything anymore.

Suddenly, something fell on his face, water. It was raining. He hadn't noticed. He was slowing down. The path was steep and rocky.

A loud crash startled him. Everything was dark now. He could feel something hit his knees. A pain on his head. He could feel himself falling, rolling down a hill, hitting some things on the way down.

He opened his eyes. He was in Moominhouse. Moomin was with him. He had fallen asleep next to him, his head resting on the bed next to his. He was holding his paw. Snufkin could hear him mumbling reassurances in his sleep and squeezing Snufkin's paw gently.

Snufkin closed his eyes again, trying to force himself to calm down. It was just a dream after all. There was no reason to be scared anymore.

He was sweating. His breathing was heavy and panicked. His cheeks and eyes were wet. The pain in his head stronger than when he had fallen asleep. His legs were more painful as well, and he was pretty sure that he had moved them during his sleep.

He managed to calm himself relatively quickly compared to the other times. He was thankful for Moomin's comfort even though this one was still fast asleep next to him. He felt relieved that he hadn't woken him up. He had done that way too much for the past weeks, and he wanted Moomin to get a real night's sleep. He deserved it after helping him so much.

Snufkin found himself smiling fondly at the troll. He squeezed his paw gently. If he could move more he would have leaned his head to rest against his friend's, thanking him quietly. Moomin really was amazing. He was still helping him relax even while he was asleep.

Suddenly, a realization hit Snufkin like a bullet. He could remember his dream. For the first time since he got here, he could remember his nightmare.

But was it really a nightmare? Something about it seemed much too real. The way he had felt in it seemed much too close to the way he had felt when his condition was at its worst. And even though the memories of the first few days when he had woken up were still a blur, he could tell that he was feeling that way back then too.

What if his dream wasn’t one? What if it was a memory of what happened that day?

If only he could remember more. Even if it really was a memory of what had happened, it was still vague. Some details were missing.

Why was he running away from those people? Who were they? What had happened for them to chase him like that? Why was he so scared of them? How long had he run? What happened to make him fall?

He hadn't noticed that he had started to breathe heavily again. His eyes weren't looking at Moomin anymore, they were distant like he was watching something far away behind his friend.

"Snufkin?" Moomin mumbled, half awake.

Snufkin was stuck in his thoughts, not realizing Moomin was waking up. He had such a terrified look on his face, at the sight of it Moomin was immediately awake, sitting back up. His eyes scanned the mumrik with worry.

"Snufkin? Are you alright?" He asked, squeezing Snufkin's paw in his own and reaching to pat his cheek with the other.

It seemed to drag Snufkin out of his thoughts, startling him a little. He winced, the quick movement hurting him.

"What's wrong Snuf?" Moomin asked gently, caressing his cheek.

"Nothing." Snufkin replied instantly, trying to be reassuring but failing as his face was still holding this look of fear.

"Don't lie." Moomin scolded, frowning. "I can see that it’s not nothing."

Snufkin turned his head to the side, avoiding Moomin's eyes. He wasn't sure if he should tell him that he was recovering his memory a little. He wasn't sure that it was true after all. And if there was one thing he didn't want to do, it was making him worry about what had happened.

"Was it another nightmare?" Moomin asked, retreating his paw.

"No. Well, yes. Kind of." He wasn't sure what he should say, but he knew that he couldn't lie more to Moomin.

"What do you mean? Was it a nightmare or not?" Moomin asked, clearly confused.

Snufkin stayed silent, he knew he had no choice but to explain now. He looked at the wall next to the bed as he tried to think of what he should say.

"It's not... nightmares." He eventually said. "It's more... Like a vague memory?"

"Is it about what happened to you?" Moomin put the dots together without him saying anything more. "Do you finally remember?"

"No. Not exactly." Snufkin said, still avoiding to look at his friend. "I mean- I don't remember everything. It's still very blurry."

"But it's a good thing!" Moomin cheered, taking his paw between his.

"I don't know about that Moomin." Snufkin said, his fear still visible in his eyes as he finally turned his head to look at Moomin.

"Oh! Yeah! Sorry, I forgot." Moomin apologized quickly, seeming to remember something. "It must not be the most pleasant memory."

"Not really." Snufkin sighed.

"So?" Moomin asked nervously. "What can you remember?"

"I-" Snufkin almost choked at the question.

"Oh! Please Snuf! I want to know." Moomin pleaded. "And I'm sure it could help you to talk about it."

Snufkin sighed, he had to admit that talking about it could help him a bit, and it's not like he had any choice anymore even though he knew Moomin wouldn’t push him more if he actually said no.

"I still don't remember much." He clarified before continuing at Moomin's encouraging nod. "I just remember running. A lot." He paused, hesitant to continue before letting it out in a whisper. "I was being chased."

Moomin could hear the fear in his voice. He couldn't stop himself. He helped Snufkin to sit up and pulled him into as best of a hug he could manage.

"I don't know why." Snufkin continued, oblivious to the world around him and to the renewed tears rolling down his cheeks. "I don't know how long I ran. I just know that I slowed down when it started raining." Quiet sobs escaped his mouth when he stopped again. "There was a loud noise. Very loud. And then-" He was cut off by his sobs. "It hurt. I was falling. It hurt so much."

Moomin's heart broke at Snufkin's painful sobs. He could hear how scared he was, terrified even. Could hear how much pain he had gone through. It didn't matter that Snufkin couldn't remember everything. He could remember enough to keep him scared and hurt.

"It's okay now." Moomin whispered in Snufkin's ears, pulling him closer and rubbing his back. "It's over. Nobody will chase you here. You're safe. You don't have to be scared."

Snufkin whimpered in his shoulder, shaking. His paws gripped Moomin's fur tightly.

"We'll- I'll protect you." Moomin said quietly as if afraid the words would scare Snufkin if spoken too loud. "I'll always be here for you. Always."

Snufkin cried harder, soaking Moomin's shoulder. Moomin kept holding him close to him and whispering reassurance in his ears. His paw kept rubbing circles on his back as the other one went to stroke the back of his head gently.

"Sorry." Snufkin apologized once he had calmed down a little. "I'm sorry."

"For what? You have nothing to apologize for." Moomin reassured him, a little confused as to why he was apologizing all of a sudden.

"For being so weak." Snufkin cried into his shoulder. "For making you worry all the time. For crying like a baby every time I have a nightmare. I'm supposed to be the happy-go-lucky vagabond for all of you. You shouldn't have to deal with me."

"What are you saying now? Of course, I worry about you! I care about you! And you have all the rights to cry, even more with what happened to you." Moomin pulled Snufkin back and cupped his damp cheeks to force him to look at him. "You're still sick and hurt, Snufkin. It's normal for you to feel weak. You'll be better soon."

"I-"

"And you don't have to put up a front with us." Moomin frowned. "You can tell us when you're upset or when you have a problem, you know. We will never judge you or think any less of you. I wish you would trust us more." He sighed quietly, his eyes sad but still holding this fondness.

"I just-" Snufkin tried but was stopped as his sobs intensified. He tried to compose himself enough to talk before he continued. "I just don't want to worry you. You know how I am Moomin. I'm not used to people helping me, caring for me. I don't like to be such a burden."

"Snufkin." Moomin started again, his own eyes filling with tears as he spoke with a firm but still gentle tone. "I told you before and I'll tell you as many as I need. You'll never be a burden, not now, never."

Moomin wanted so badly for Snufkin to stop thinking of himself as a burden. He knew that he wasn't used to being cared for and accepting help from others. He knew that he had been through a lot of hard times alone, as he had been lost when he was still a baby and took to wander at a very young age. But Moomin had hoped, ever since they met and became best friends, that he would change. That he would accept to consider them as his family. That he would understand that he could count on them if he was in need. And, that he could tell them whenever he had a problem, whether it be from needing help when he got hurt or when he needed food, or when he had gone through a hard time during his travel and needed to talk about it.

"You know you can come to us whenever you need help or if you need someone to talk to. We'll always be there for you... I'll always be there." Moomin continued, letting his tears fall in the fur on his cheeks, his eyes serious as he looked in Snufkin's. "You don't have to deal with everything alone anymore."

Snufkin broke down into sobs again at that. Moomin pulled him back into another hug. He nuzzled his hair gently, trying to sooth him and show him that he was there. Moomin actually contemplated the thought of letting Snufkin know of his feelings, but he thought against it. He'd rather tell him when his friend isn't as overwhelmed.

He rocked Snufkin in his arms until his sobs lessened, and he fell into a peaceful slumber against the troll's shoulder. Moomin thought about how he could stay like this forever, cuddling his beloved mumrik in his arms and letting him rest safe against him.

Eventually, he let go of his friend, laying him back in his bed carefully. His chest was tight as he looked down at his sleeping friend. He was usually such a light sleeper, it was hard seeing him so tired that he could be moved without being woken up.

Moomin let himself get lost in his thoughts as he played gently with Snufkin's hair.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading this chapter. I hope you liked it.
> 
> I'm really sorry, I just got caught up in my own work and totally kept forgetting to update this and ended up forgetting totally about it for a few weeks. Now that I'm done with Whumptober and with the NaNoWriMo, I'll try my best to keep updating this until its end. I actually have a few more chapters ready to go but have yet to write the ending, so I need to get back into it and then write the next one (I don't know which one yet, I have many that I started but probably something angsty lol)


	10. Chapter 10

The sun was just starting to show up when Snufkin woke up again. Moomin was asleep next to him, just like when he had woken up that night, the only difference was his arm laying lazily close to his face, paw still in his hair.

Snufkin was still feeling overwhelmed from their discussion from earlier, tears already refilling his eyes as he looked fondly at the sleeping moomin.

He wished he could be the one Moomin wanted him to be. He wished he could find it in him to fight those horrible thoughts that always stopped him from talking to them about what was wrong. He wished he could stop doubting himself and everyone around him. Wished he could stop being scared of considering them as his family and MoominHouse as his home. But it was too much for him.

Snufkin had always lived alone. He had never had anyone he could call 'family' or anywhere he could call 'home'. He had grown up in difficult conditions. He had no friends and was treated like he shouldn't have been alive. He had quickly run away whenever he’d had the occasion. The first few years had been really hard, but it had been freeing for him. He had found his freedom in his solitude.

Ever since he had met the Moomins and their friends, and learned about his own family, fears had started to fill him. Fears for his freedom. Forgotten fears of being tied to someone who wanted him to be someone he could never be. Fears of being forced to stay in one place, stuck in a dark and cold room all day. But there was also a new kind of fear. The fear of hurting his newfound friends and family. The fear of them rejecting him. The fear of them thinking of him as a useless tramp. And the fear of being forgotten by them as if his presence had never been anything more than a dream. The fear of them getting tired of his need to wander and to leave them every year and fear of them hating him for it.

Of course, with time, Snufkin had come to learn that his fears were unfounded. Nobody in Moomin Valley would ever think of him badly (aside from the park keeper, of course). And the Moomins loved him like their own son, he knew this even though it was still hard to accept for him. He had come to learn that he could trust them with anything, but even though he knew, he still found himself keeping everything from them in order to not bother them or worst, worry them.

Snufkin thought back on what Moomin had told him earlier. He had never thought that, by trying to keep everything to himself as to not hurt and bother anyone, he would be hurting them further. Guilt washed up over him. He brought a hand to his face and rubbed his eyes.

He didn't mean to hurt any of them. He didn't mean to make them worry over him.  
He was scared.  
He had thought for a long, long time that being alone was the best for him. He had thought that being tied to someone would take away his freedom. Now though, he knew better. He knew that it wasn't true. Ever since he got to Moomin Valley and met all of them, nobody ever tried to keep him from leaving. Of course, Moomin was always sad and worried, and Snufkin knew that Moomin's parents were too, but never did they try to keep him from leaving. He was always free to come and go as he pleased. They respected his need to wander.

A thought came to his still quite foggy mind then. Maybe, he could try it. Maybe he could try to be more open, at least with Moomintroll. If he couldn't do it with Moomin then there would be no way he could with anyone else. Maybe with MoominMamma too, she was always very quiet and would listen to anything he would want to tell her without pressing him to do so and without judging him. If it was for Moomin, he should at least try.

Something moved. He heard Moomintroll stir next to him, yawning as he woke up. His hand that was still in Snufkin's hair moved away to rub his sleepy eyes. Snufkin watched quietly, lifting the hand that was over his eyes just enough to see his friend sitting up groggily.

"Good Morning, Snuf." He yawned again.

"Good Morning, Moomintroll." Snufkin replied simply.

"Did you manage to sleep a little better?" Moomin asked, suddenly remembering that night. "You didn't have another nightmare, did you?"

"No, no. I slept just fine." Thanks to you. He wanted to say, but the words didn't come out, and he felt too embarrassed to let them out anyway.

"Good!" Moomin sighed in relief and beamed at him. "I'm glad you could at least have some rest without any of those horrible nightmares. They sound horrible."

Snufkin nodded quietly. If what he thought was true, and it was really some of his memories coming back then would it be good to tell them to Moomin? If he thought that was already horrible what would he think once Snufkin remembered and told him the whole story? It would only make him worry more.

He shook his head. No. He had decided to try to be more open. If he started thinking that way again, then it would never work. He would never be able to do it. He had to trust his friend and accept his help, even if it meant shocking him or worrying him further.

"Are you okay, Snufkin?" Moomintroll's voice sounded concerned.

"Of course, Moomin. I must have gotten lost in my thoughts, that's all." Snufkin quickly reassured, although Moomin didn't seem convinced.

"Is it about them?" Moomin asked hesitantly. "You said they were memories. Is it because of that?"

Snufkin looked at him for a moment. Then, he sighed. "Yes."

"Are you worried about remembering?" He asked with concern in his eyes but a knowing look.

He really does know me too well. Snufkin thought. He didn't say anything, just gave Moomin a small smile and a short nod.

"It's okay. You don't have to worry." Moomin took his paw again. "Whatever you will remember, it happened in the past. And if you can't remember it all, then that's alright too."

"But what if I just keep having those nightmares even after I'm better?" Snufkin asked, his eyes locked at the ceiling, avoiding Moomin's.

Moomin thought for a moment, looking at their hands. When he spoke, he locked eyes with Snufkin, face serious but with a gentle smile on his lips. "You can come wake me up whenever you have them. I'll be there if you need me."

"But what if it still comes every night. I can't spend every night coming to wake you up because I had a nightmare." Snufkin replied, frowning.

"Of course, you can!" Moomin exclaimed, making Snufkin flinched a little. "If you can't sleep you don't have to stay alone in your tent while I get to sleep peacefully. I'm your best friend. That's what I'm here for." He said more quietly but still with confidence, a slight blush creeping on his face. "And if you'd prefer to leave me sleep then you should at least try to talk to Mamma, I know that she won't mind if you wake her up, even for a nightmare."

"I suppose you're right." Snufkin sighed. "Thank you Moomin." He said with a smile, letting himself show all the fondness and affection he had for his friend.

Moomin just beamed at him in return, blushing more. Then he perked up again, seemingly remembering something.

"Oh! By the way. We noticed that you didn't had your backpack and any of your equipment with you when we found you." He explained, looking down sadly before he looked up at him again with a soft and kind smile. "So we found some new ones for you. Of course, we know how you feel about new stuff, but I think it's aged just enough that you'll like it just fine. I hope that's okay."

"Of course, it's okay! Thank you." Snufkin immediately replied, smiling gratefully at Moomin.

"Say Snuf..." Moomin appeared suddenly hesitant, like something was on his mind, but he wasn't sure if he should talk about it or not. "Will you go away when you're better?"

"Why do you ask that?" Snufkin asked genuinely confused. "Mamma said it would still take some times for me to get better, I didn't really thought about it."

"Because..." Moomin stopped, playing nervously with his hands. "I know you don't like to stay inside for too long and, last time you were sick and had to stay, you went away for a few days after that. And you've been stuck here for so long already."

"Well," Snufkin looked away, a bit embarrassed but forced himself to continue, he had to tell Moomin, maybe it would help him as well. "To be honest, Moomin, I-" He stopped, sensing Moomin's curious eyes on him. "I don't think I will." He sighed, internally bashing himself for not being able to say what he wanted. No. What he needed.

"You don't think?" Moomin was surprised and, even though he tried not to show it, a little relieved, but also concerned. "Why?"

Snufkin glanced at him quietly. Moomin knew that he wasn't saying everything, that he wanted to say more. He wasn't going to push him and Snufkin knew it, but somehow, it was that fact that made him finally talk.

"I'm- I'm scared of leaving, I think." He didn't think, he knew.

Moomin didn't say anything at first, just looking at him with sad, understanding eyes. He took his hands in his paws, rubbing little circles on them with his thumbs.

"You don't have to be scared. It's not because something happened to you this one time that it will happen again. And I know you, you're strong and smart, you'll make it through anything." He tried to reassure as best as he could, unsure of what to say. "And if you ever need a break, you can stay here with us, even if you come back during winter, you can make yourself at home and wake us up. We'll be here for you Snuf."

"I- Thank you, Moomin." Snufkin mumbled, eyes welling up with tears again. "You know, I don't know if I really should continue to wander." Moomin froze, surprised. "I mean, it's probably because I'm scared. But, I think it's selfish to leave every year, I do nothing but worry you all, and I come back like..."

"No, no. You're not being selfish at all. It's in your nature, just like our nature is to hibernate, yours is to wander." Moomin quickly reassured. "Of course, I worry, but it's only because I care for you. It doesn't mean that you should stop. I know you're just scared. You need more time, it's all." He started rubbing Snufkin's paw again and smiled gently. "I'm sure as soon as you're better you'll be aching to go wander. And I'm sure I'll have to beg for you to come inside during storms again."

Snufkin chuckled wetly at that. "I sure hope you're right." He sighed, squeezing gently Moomin's paws.

"I know I am!" The moomin replied with confidence. "And, of course, if you're still scared but need to wander, I could come with you. We could go on short trips. Only if you want to though. I don't want to force my presence onto you. Oh! And I'm sure Little My would be happy to come too. Even if we plan on going only the two of us, I'm sure she could follow us for miles without us noticing until we're too far from home and have to accept her with us." Moomin giggled at the thought, delighted when Snufkin joined in the giggles, tears quietly rolling down his cheeks as he closed his eyes.

"It's a good idea Moomin. And I'm sure you're right for Little My." He giggled quietly, smiling back at Moomin. “I guess we’ll have to wait and see how I feel about it.”

“Yes. I’m sure you’ll be fine though.” Moomin smiled. “You’re stronger than you think you are. I told you, I’m sure you’ll be aching to be out and wandering around before you even know it.”

They smiled at each other for a moment, Snufkin thinking to himself how amazing Moomin was and already feeling better from the confidence in Moomin’s voice.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading. I hope you liked it so far.
> 
> Oh god it's been so long, I'm so sorry. Turns out I needed a bit of a break and kinda forgot to continue to upload this fic, whoops.  
> Good news is that I just, finally, finished this fic so you'll have to wait a little but you'll definitely have the ending soon. Only a few chapters to go :3c  
> I'll just try my best to post it soon so i don't forget, but with how my memory is with the meds I can't guaranty anything.


	11. Chapter 11

It took a few more weeks for Snufkin to feel well enough to be able to move on his own again, granted he needed Moomin’s help to walk longer distances. His voice was healed and all his injuries were pretty much in the past. Only his nightmares kept bugging him regularly. He hadn’t remembered much of what had happened to him yet, and was still scared of remembering, but it was alright, with Moomin’s constant support he felt better. His legs, although mostly healed, still caused him pain. He would feel dizzy easily when he would get up too fast or when he would stand for too long, and he would get tired easily, still sleeping most of his days away. But, he was getting better.

“Good Morning, Snufkin, dear.” MoominMamma greeted happily as Snufkin made his way to the kitchen, helping himself with the walls. “How are you feeling today?”

“Good Morning, Mamma.” Snufkin replied politely. “I’m fine, thank you.”

“Good.” MoominMamma beamed, happy to hear him call her Mamma now, as he always used to call her MoominMamma really politely. “How are your legs? And your head?”

“They still hurt a bit, and I’m still a bit dizzy when I stand up, but it’s getting better.” Snufkin answered, sitting with a sigh of relief at the kitchen table.

MoominMamma hummed in response, starting to cook the first pancakes. “It should get better with more time and rest. I’ll make you some medicine for the pain. Do you want some tea while I prepare breakfast?”

“Tea would be nice.” Snufkin nodded shyly. “Thank you.”

“I don’t suppose Moomin and Little My are up yet?” MoominMamma asked as she served Snufkin a cup of warm tea.

“Last time I checked they were both still fast asleep.” Snufkin chuckled lightly. “Knowing Little My she won’t be down until breakfast is ready.”

MoominMamma chuckled with him before they fell in a peaceful silence as Snufkin enjoyed his tea and MoominMamma prepared her pancakes.

Snufkin had to admit, being alone with MoominMamma in a different room than his bedroom felt much better than staying in the same room all the time even if he was with his friends. He loved them dearly, but it didn’t help the trapped feeling he was getting after such a long time stuck in there. He was still scared of going out but, as Moomin had predicted, he’d started to become achy to go out. Maybe he would ask Moomin later if they can walk up to his campsite for a while, so he can get some summer breeze.

Speaking of Moomin, this one just entered the room, rubbing his eyes groggily. He greeted His mother and Snufkin, accepting a glass of water from her as he sat next to his friend. They stayed in a comfortable silence, the boys drinking their drinks and MoominMamma making her pancakes.

It didn’t last for long though.

“Mamma! Are the pancakes ready?!” Little My called, running in the room and hopping onto the table. 

“Good morning, Little My.” MoominMamma chuckled, flipping her pancake. “It’ll be ready soon.”

Little My groaned in disappointment, the answer she was given not the one she was expecting, and flopped down on the table. She watched hungrily as Mamma finished cooking.

After a delicious breakfast, Moomin, who’d noticed Snufkin’s eyes glancing longingly out the window, proposed to Snufkin and Little My to head out for a while, not too far from home. Snufkin gave him a grateful smile as Moomin came to help him walk, letting him lean on him.

Little My ran ahead as soon as the door was open, looking happy to be finally outside, after spending weeks with her brother without going out. Moomin and Snufkin followed behind her more slowly. They made sure to take their time so Snufkin wouldn’t hurt too much. He felt better already with MoominMamma’s medicine in him, but he still couldn’t walk too fast.

They walked slowly to the campsite, Moomin asking silently Snufkin if he wanted to stay there. Snufkin nodded quietly, and they made their way to sit on one of the logs around the usual spot for his fire. Little My, who’d ran further ahead looked back at them before running back to them and taking a seat on the log in front of them.

They just sat there, silently, for a while. Moomin and Snufkin enjoyed a peaceful silence between them, just happy to be out in the nice summer breeze. Little My, however, was a little less calm about it. She tapped the log with her feet, growing more and more bored as the minutes passed.

Thankfully, Snorkmaiden and Sniff made their appearance just in time to distract her.

“Oh! You’re out? How wonderful!” Snorkmaiden called happily. “Are you feeling better, Snufkin?”

“Did we miss breakfast already?” Sniff asked, sounding disappointed.

“Good Morning, Snorkmaiden, Sniff.” Moomin greeted with a smile.

“Good Morning.” Snufkin greeted as well, a little less enthusiastically. “I feel a little better, yes.” 

“What are you two doing here?” Moomin asked them as they came to stand next to them.

“We came to see how you were doing.” Snorkmaiden replied easily. “It’s been a while since we last came after all.”

“Well you didn’t have to.” Little My said in her usual brash tone. “But, as long as you’re here… Let’s at least make you useful.” She continued, a malicious grin spreading on her face as she looked at Sniff.

“My, what are you p-” Moomin didn’t have time to finish his phrase that Little My jumped onto Sniff and bit his tail before running away and laughing maniacally. 

“OW!” Sniff cried, gripping his poor tail, and looked after Little My. “What was that for?!” 

Little My didn’t respond, only laughing at him and teasing him to come after her. Sniff was more of a whiner than a runner but, he still took the bait and went running after her while the others just watched as they ran farther away.

“I’d better go after them.” Snorkmaiden sighed, shaking her head. “We don’t want them to get into trouble.” She smiled at the two boys before making her way after their friends.

Moomin and Snufkin watched silently as they went, Little My and Sniff already disappearing in the woods and Snorkmaiden hurrying after them. Moomin then turned back to Snufkin. They both stared at each other for a moment before starting to giggle.

“I guess she must have been really bored then.” Moomin commented as the giggles died down. “At least, it should distract her for a while.”

“Probably.” Snufkin agreed with a smile. “I’m honestly surprised that she stayed with me for so long. You both could have gone out whenever you wanted…”

“Well,” Moomin looked at Snufkin with a shy smile. “We wanted to make sure you would be alright. And, besides, we preferred to be with you.”

“That’s nice of you.” Snufkin murmured, blushing a little. “I’m sorry about all the trouble.” 

“Hey! Don’t go apologizing now!” Moomin scolded gently. “You didn’t do anything bad. And we wanted to take care of you, it’s not like we were forced to stay by your side.”

“Still…” The mumrik looked down at his feet.

“Why can’t you believe that we wanted to help you?” Moomin sighed. “It wasn’t your fault you got hurt, you know. We don’t mind being with you even if you’re hurt. We care about you.”

“It’s just…” Snufkin stopped himself, thinking for a moment. “I don’t really know. I’ve been alone for so long. I’ve never had anyone before I met you, you know.”

“I know…” Moomin sighed, drawing Snufkin closer to him, letting him lean on his shoulder. “But, now you have us. We care about you. We love you. You don’t have to think of yourself as a burden here. You’ll never bother any of us no matter what.”

Snufkin didn’t reply to that, only burying his face into Moomin’s shoulder. Moomin smiled softly down at him, before leaning his head on Snufkin’s.

They stayed that way for a long moment, silently enjoying each other’s company, Snufkin enjoying Moomin’s delicate fur against him. Then, Moomin thought to himself about how close they were, how they were leaning against each other and how Snufkin had buried his face into his shoulder so nicely.

Maybe it was time.

Moomin thought about what a good occasion it would be for him to confess to Snufkin about his feelings. But, he couldn’t help but start to panic at the thought. What if Snufkin got scared by it, what if he wanted to run away after that. He might hurt himself more if he tries to leave on his own.

No. Moomin thought, trying to calm himself and not let the heat rise up his cheeks.  He wouldn’t run away like that. If anything he’ll tell me that he doesn’t feel the same, and we’ll leave it at that. He tried to convince himself.

“Hm… Snufkin?” Moomin murmured nervously, feeling his face already heating up. “I- You know… I care about you… A lot…”

“Hm?” Snufkin hummed, a little confused, in his fur. “I know?”

“No.... I mean…” Moomin huffed, annoyed at himself for being so awkward when it comes to talking about his feelings toward his friend. “I- I care more tha- than that.”

“What do you mean?” Snufkin asked, pulling away from his friend to look at him in confusion. “Are you alright, Moomintroll?”

“No- I mean, yes.” Moomin stuttered, trying and failing to compose himself. “I just-” He groaned in frustration. “I care about you. A lot. Like… More than a f- friend.”

“Moomin? I’m sorry but, I’m not sure what you’re trying to say.” Snufkin frowned.

“I mean that I think I’m in love with you!” Moomin finally snapped.

He breathed heavily for a moment before realizing what he’d just done and covering his mouth. He looked up at Snufkin in panic to see his reaction. This one was staring at him blankly, blinking at him as he tried to understand the words that had been told to him.

“You-” He stuttered, unable to contain the dark blush spreading across his face. “I-”

“I- I’m sorry!” Moomin quickly apologized, shaking his head rapidly. “D- Don’t worry! It’s okay if you don’t feel the same! We can just do as if he never said anything!”

“No, no.” Snufkin shook his head, stopping Moomin before he could start to ramble. “I- It’s okay.” He looked down at his feet. “I… I think I love you too.” He added in a muffled whisper.

Moomin’s ears perked up. He wasn’t sure he’d heard it right. It took a moment for his brain to register that Snufkin, who was now as red as a tomato and looking very embarrassed but still wearing a soft smile on his face, was reciprocating the feeling. Moomin’s face, then, immediately lit up, a bright smile spreading across his face as he leaned forward and took Snufkin’s paws in his.

“Really?” He asked with hopeful eyes piercing through Snufkin’s as he looked back at him in surprise at the sudden touch. “Do you really feel the same?”

“I-” Snufkin swallowed his own words, too embarrassed to let them out. He took the time to take a deep breath before allowing them to fall out, willing himself to be more confident about it. “Yes. I love you too.”

He, then, almost choked when he was suddenly pulled in a warm embrace. He took a moment to recover from the initial shock before slowly wrapping his arms around the soft troll, hugging him back.

They stayed like that for a moment before finally pulling away slowly and looking at each other, still holding onto each other’s paws. They were both fully red and still embarrassed, but smiling happily at each other.

“I’m so happy.” Moomin burst out laughing. “I was so afraid I’d scare you away.”

“I’d never run away from you.” Snufkin reassured with a soft smile. “I know how much you care about me, I couldn’t abandon you like that.”

“Oh! How I’m happy!” Moomin laughed, beaming at Snufkin. “Little My will finally leave me alone.”

“What did she do now?” Snufkin laughed as well, not surprised to hear that his sister was giving poor Moomin a hard time.

“She knew how I felt and kept teasing me about it.” Moomin huffed lightly. “You know that she even forced me to confess to you? She told me I would have only a week or so after you were healed, or she’d tell you herself.”

“That sounds like her alright.” Snufkin laughed lightly. “My poor friend, how she must have tortured you.” He joked.

“You can’t even imagine.” Moomin said, taking on a dramatic tone. “She wouldn’t even leave me alone. She kept bugging me about how I should hurry up and confess already and how I shouldn’t even think about it because it was obvious you loved me as well. It was all so horrible!”

Snufkin laughed harder at the way Moomin spoke, taking on a dramatic pose as he did. He didn’t even think about how his body was still painful, even as he laughed so hard that it would have hurt. How amazing it was to be alone with Moomin, laughing happily together under the warm sun.

“I guess I should thank her.” Moomin said with a wide smile. “It’s because of her that I had to confess. I probably would have waited more if it wasn’t for her annoying me with it.”

“She likes to tease us and to sound rude, but she always means well.” Snufkin hummed in agreement, smiling back at his friend. “I’m glad she forced you to confess. I would never have said anything myself. I was too scared of losing you as well.”

“You’ll never lose me Snuf.” Moomin said seriously. “I’ll always be there for you. I said it, and I’ll say it as many times as I need. I care about you too much to let you go like that.”

“How about winter though?” Snufkin asked, a little shyly.

“Of course, I’ll let you go then!” Moomin quickly corrected. “I’ll let you go as long as you want to and as long as you need time for yourself! I know that you need it, and I’ll always respect that. It’s true that I’m always sad but, you’re right, like you said before it’s because you leave that I can be so happy to find you again in the spring. Besides, I sleep the whole winter away, so it’s really nothing at all.” He reassured. “Of course, if you wanted to stay here and hibernate with me I’d be happy to have you here as well… Or if you wanted me to come with you in the winter…” He mumbled quietly.

“Of course.” Snufkin agreed with a soft smile. “It’s so good to know that I have a place to come back to.” He sighed happily as he leaned against Moomin’s shoulder, leaning his head on him, a paw still holding Moomin’s and not ready to let it go yet.

“You can always come back home.” Moomin agreed, leaning his head against Snufkin’s. “You’ll always be welcome to stay as long as you want, whenever you want.”

“I know.” Snufkin whispered quietly. “Home.” He smiled.

Later, when Little My, Sniff and Snorkmaiden came back around, they found them sleeping peacefully against each other. 

“Aw.” Snorkmaiden cooed. “Look at how cute they are like that.”

“What are they doing?” Sniff, clueless as always, asked.

“How did they even manage to fall asleep like that?” Little My muttered as she hopped onto the log in front of them, standing there with her paws on her hips.

“Do you think we should wake them up and get them inside to rest?” Snorkmaiden asked the little mymble.

“If after that they didn’t confess, I’m going to bite Moomin’s tail so hard it’ll keep the mark.” Little My huffed.

“Little My!” Snorkmaiden scolded lightly, a small smile tugging at her lips.

“What?” Little My asked as if she hadn’t said anything. “It’s not my fault they’re as clueless as Sniff sometimes!”

“Hey!” Sniff exclaimed, offended. “I’m not clueless!”

“Hm?” Moomin groggily opened his eyes and looked around at them. “What’s going on?”

“Look who’s awake now.” Little My huffed, looking as Moomin rubbed at his eyes, Snufkin slowly getting around as well next to him.

“Did you two have a nice nap?” Snorkmaiden, soft and gentle as always, asked. “You two looked so comfortable and peaceful. We didn’t mean to wake you up.”

“We must have fallen asleep.” Moomin mumbled, more to himself and Snufkin than to their friends. “What time is it?”

“Time to go home and for you to nap in a real bed.” Little My scolded. “Snufkin’s still hurt. He shouldn’t sleep sitting up like that.”

“I’m fine, My.” Snufkin yawned, sitting back up next to Moomin. “We didn’t mean to take a nap. Guess we were more tired than we thought.”

“Maybe we should head back now.” Moomin noted to snufkin, ignoring Little My. “You’d rest better in a bed.”

Snufkin nodded in agreement and started to stretch. Moomin got up to his feet and reached out a paw to Snufkin, ready to help him back up the hill and home. Snufkin gratefully took his offer for help, thanking him quietly. Sniff, who was eager to see if MoominMamma had prepared any food for them led the way, getting past by Little My who mocked him by saying that if MoominMamma had prepared anything she would eat it all before he could reach it, followed more slowly by Moomin, Snufkin and Snorkmaiden.

When they got home, Little My and Sniff were stuffing themselves on cookies that MoominMamma had indeed prepared for them. Moomin and Snufkin ate a few before heading back up the stairs to rest some more, Moomin not willing to leave Snufkin’s side even if he wasn’t going to sleep as much as him. Snorkmaiden talked with them for a while before leaving them to rest and going back home, accompanied by Sniff.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading so far! I hope you enjoy it!
> 
> Damn it took Moomin so long to confess X) but hey he finally did it! yay!  
> Isn't it amazing, the boys finally confessed, Snufkin is getting better even though it's slow, really it's all getting better now :3


	12. Chapter 12

For the next few days, Moomin took the habit of helping Snufkin out and to his campsite. There, they’d just sit, mostly in silence, and look at the scenery. Little My would follow them most of the time before running off on her own, complaining about how boring they were. They didn’t mind. They enjoyed their moments alone, even if it was mostly spent in silence. 

They weren’t quite used to the idea of being ’together’ yet, but they just enjoyed the feeling of knowing the other reciprocated their own feelings and that they didn’t have to hide them anymore.

Moomin had been so happy to tell Little My off the first time when she started to tease him again, so happy to tell her that it was too late already, and he’d done it. She made fun of him, of course, but seemed satisfied knowing it was done. She continued to tease him, however, but this time also teasing her little brother as well.

Snufkin was getting better, the pain lessening as the days passed, but he still couldn’t walk too far and needed Moomin’s help when he wanted to go out. He still needed Moomin and Little My to sleep by his side, as he was still plagued with nightmares of what had happened to him, but he couldn’t remember more yet, which he was worried about.

Moomin was worried about Snufkin’s nightmares, but he continued to take care of him, waking him up when he would start to stir and comforting him until he’d fall back to sleep. He kept reassuring him that he would remember eventually and that even if he didn’t it was alright, he didn’t need to remember anything that might hurt him after all.

Little My spent more time outside now that Snufkin was better. She’d always come back with Snorkmaiden and Sniff come lunchtime. She liked to bother both Moomin and Snufkin by teasing them when she could, but she mostly left them alone, not wanting to be in the lover boys’ way.

That night, Snufkin was having more trouble sleeping than before. He knew he would be fine enough to be able to walk farther soon and then, finally, he’d be able to walk on his own again.

He tossed and turned in his sleep, trying to get away from the nightmares again, trying to escape.

“Come back here!”

“Get him!”

“Don’t let him escape!”

“This one will make us rich! Catch him!”

The voices called after him, following him.

“I don’t care if we need to break his legs! Just get him!”

They were close, much too close. He needed to get away, to get as far away as possible. He ran and ran, until he finally found a place to hide. He hid under a tree, in a small hole, and listened as they ran around.

“Where is he?” 

“Damn it! We lost him!”

“You’re all useless! How could you lose him? Do you know how valuable he is?”

“He can’t have disappeared out of nowhere. We need to find him.”

“Well, find him! We need to catch him to sell him to one of those stupid collectors as a fricking pet! Do you even know how much they’re willing to pay for one of those stupid mumriks?”

Mumriks? They want to capture me and sell me as a pet? Snufkin thought, trying his best to stop panting and be quiet. I need to escape and fast. I can’t let them catch me.

“Wait! I think I heard something!”

Oh, no.

“Here! I found him!”

Shit!

“There he is!”

“Get him!”

Snufkin ran and ran again, this time not trying to find a spot to hide in. He needed to put as much distance between him and them as possible.

“Shoot him! I don’t care what happens! Just don’t let him get away! Shoot his legs!”

Snufkin couldn’t even think as he ran, shots ringing through the air, ringing in his ears as it came close to him, missing him by so little he was amazed that he was still intact. 

He just ran.

He didn’t know how long it took for him to lose them, but eventually, it seemed like he was finally alone. Rain was falling on him now. He couldn’t feel his body anymore, even the pain that he’d been feeling in his limbs before was gone. But, he was alone. Then, a loud noise nearby made him slow down and turn to look where it came from.

It was coming down towards him. It was too fast for him to even register it. He tried to get away, but it was too late. He was already being tossed under the rocks. He wanted to get out, to stop the pain from shooting through his body. He needed to get away, to stop the rocks. He was hurting so bad. He was starting to feel weak, to-

“-fkin! Snufkin! It’s just a nightmare! Please, wake up! Snufkin!” 

His eyes shot open, blinking rapidly and looking around frantically. He wasn’t under the rocks anymore. His body wasn’t hurting as much anymore. He was in a dark room, in a warm bed. 

“Calm down. It’s okay, Snuf. It’s okay.” Moomin was next to him, stroking his head and rubbing circles on his paw. “It was just another nightmare. You’re fine. You’re safe.”

Snufkin realized that he was breathing heavily, his cheeks were damp, and he hadn’t realized that he was still trying to get away from Moomin’s gentle paws.

He tried to close his eyes again, trying to focus on his breath as he finally stilled and let Moomin sooth him. It took some time, but he managed to calm himself down after a while.

“See, you’re alright. It’s all fine now.” Moomin smiled gently at him as he opened his eyes again. “Here.” Moomin said as he helped Snufkin sit up. “I’ll go get you a glass of water, alright?”

Snufkin nodded to that, watching as Moomin left the room. It didn’t even take a minute before Moomin was back in the room with a glass of water. He was panting slightly but recovered quickly to give Snufkin the glass and help him drink.

“Are you feeling better?” Moomin asked as he took back the glass and set it on the nightstand.

“Yes. Thank you, Moomee.” Snufkin replied, leaning against his friend for comfort.

Moomin wrapped his arms around Snufkin’s shoulders without hesitating, pulling him closer and nuzzling his hair in a soothing manner.

“Was it the same as before?” Moomin eventually asked. “You seemed more shaken than before, and it was harder to wake you up.” He wondered out loud.

“Not… exactly…” Snufkin mumbled, burying his face in Moomin’s fur.

“Do… You want to talk about it?” Moomin asked hesitantly.

He waited for Snufkin to shake his head against his chest. “Okay. Do you want me to find a book to read to you, so you can sleep again?”

Snufkin thought for a moment, nuzzling at Moomin’s fur, before he hummed in response. He reluctantly pulled back to let Moomin get up to find a book before immediately setting back against him when he came back to sit next to him onto the bed, sitting against the headboard to read the book he’d found. Moomin helped Snufkin get comfortable before starting to read to him, Snufkin’s head against his chest, his paws coming to rest on it as well.

Snufkin loved it when Moomin read stories to him, he found him to be amazing at telling those stories, even the boring romantic stories that Snorkmaiden had left at Moominhouse from the times she spent there.

In no time, Snufkin felt himself start to fade away. Moomin’s voice became like background noise to his ear despite them being right next to his mouth. Soon, the arms of sleep called him in their warmth. He fell asleep on Moomin, only one chapter into the book.

The next day, when he woke up, he found himself laying down on the mattress, the warm blanket pulled back over him despite him falling asleep without it. Moomin seemed to be up already as he was nowhere in sight.

Snufkin usually wasn’t one to stay in bed, but, even as he knew he should get up, the sun through the window telling him that the morning had already begun a little while ago, he decided to linger in bed a little longer. He really wanted to stay there for longer, ignoring his mind telling him to get up. He was comfortable in this warm bed. He missed Moomin’s presence next to him, but he could survive without him for a little while. The fear from his dream of that night still lingered in his mind, making it even harder for him to convince himself to get up and going. He wanted nothing but to go back to sleep and forget.

As he was snuggling deep in his blanket, the door opened and footsteps approached the bed. Snufkin reluctantly opened an eye to look at whoever was there. He felt his heart melt with fondness at the sight of his beloved Moomintroll coming to set a tray with pancakes and a mug of what Snufkin could assume from the smell to be coffee on the nightstand.

Moomin then sat on the edge of the bed. Snufkin closed his eyes again as Moomin reached out to stroke his hair gently. The warm and soothing paw was so comforting to Snufkin, he couldn’t help but snuggle deep in his bed, making small, content noises that made Moomin chuckle with fondness.

“I asked Mamma if I could give you your breakfast in bed.” Moomin said with a warm smile. “You seemed so peaceful in your sleep I didn’t want to wake you up.”

Snufkin hummed inside the blanket, not wanting to get up yet and still seeking the comfort of the warm bed and the soothing paw. Moomin chuckled again, leaning down to nuzzle at Snufkin’s hair.

“Come on.” He chuckled. “You should eat your breakfast before it gets cold. You can’t stay in bed all day.”

Snufkin groaned and tried to bury himself under the blanket but failed, not really wanting Moomin’s warmth to go away. Moomin laughed as he pulled Snufkin, so he could sit him up. Snufkin wasn’t really happy with it but didn’t fight it, even less when Moomin took his head between his paws to plant a moominkiss on his forehead.

Breakfast was eaten slowly, Snufkin still not wanting to get out of the warm bed and leave Moomin’s comfortable shoulder. When they were done, Moomin took the tray down to the kitchen where MoominMamma took it to wash the dishes as her son hurried back up to get Snufkin to get up.

Little My mocked Snufkin as he came down, helped by Moomin, for how groggy he looked and how he was supposed to be an early person. They shrugged her off, making their way out to go rest at the campsite.

That day, Snufkin asked to sit by the river, at his usual fishing spot. Moomin obliged happily, leading him there and helping him sit down on the grass. It didn’t take long for the two of them to decide that this beautiful day would be spent napping under the warm sun, Moomin accepting to become a comfortable pillow for his dear Snufkin.

Little My, as usual, came running by, mocking them at first before running off to go find Snorkmaiden and Sniff. They came back at noon, waking up the boys and walking with them to the house to eat lunch.

They stayed the whole afternoon, talking and laughing with Snufkin and Moomin, telling them stories of their own and talking gossips about the Valley, Little My not missing any occasion to mock everyone mentioned.

It was just another day like the others, but, something was still different, somehow. Snufkin had found that it was really tiring despite nothing having happened.

That night, as Moomin and Snufkin prepared to sleep, Moomin sat on the edge of the bed, next to Snufkin to take a good look at him. 

“Is something wrong, Snuf?” He asked, a little worried. “You seemed a bit strange today… Oh! Don’t take it the wrong way! I don’t mean that as a bad thing!” He rectified quickly. “I just mean that, well, you seemed a bit… different?”

Snufkin didn’t say anything, looking at Moomin for a moment before sighing and slumping against his shoulder, resting his head on the troll.

“Did something happen?” Moomin asked with concern. “Is it because of last night?” He asked after thinking for a moment. “Is it because of your nightmare? You said it wasn’t the same as before…”

Snufkin sighed again, nodding against his friend.

“Do you want to talk about it?” Moomin offered.

“I remember…” Snufkin mumbled quietly.

“What do you mean?” Moomin asked, confused for a moment before realizing what he had meant. “Do you remember what happened to you?”

Snufkin nodded silently, letting the silence linger until he was sure Moomin wanted to ask him what he remembered exactly but wouldn’t ask and leave him the choice of talking or not.

“I was being chased…” He eventually spoke. “People wanted to capture me.”

“What do you mean they wanted to capture you??” Moomin asked in disbelief. “Why would they do that?”

“They wanted to sell me.” Snufkin whispered, afraid of talking too loud. “They wanted to sell me to some collectors.”

“Wh- What?” Moomin was so shocked he couldn’t form more words.

“They said stupid mumriks like me were rare and costed a lot.” Snufkin continued quietly. “They said they’d make a fortune if they could sell me.”

“Oh, Snufkin…” Moomin sighed sadly, pulling Snufkin closer against him.

“They wouldn’t let me escape.” Snufkin cried. “I tried to hide but they found me. They started to shoot at me. They wanted to break and shoot my legs, so I wouldn’t get away from them. I don’t know how long I ran… It hurt so much. I couldn’t even feel anything anymore. And when I was finally alone and far away the avalanche took me. I was so painful, Moomin.”

“Shhh…” Moomin shushed gently, a paw coming to rest on Snufkin’s head, nuzzling at his hair. “It’s okay. It’s all over now. You’re safe. You’re home.”

Snufkin hadn’t even noticed that he’d started to cry, sobbing into Moomin’s neck. His breathing was quick and heavy, it hurt.

Moomin continued to whisper reassurances to him, nuzzling his hair and stroking the back of his head gently, until he calmed down. He couldn’t blame his friend for being so shaken up about the whole thing, being chased and shot at would trouble anybody. To think that they wanted to capture him to sell him, that they were ready to break his legs, and shoot him to get him to make money out of him. Saying that he was shocked was an understatement, but he had to be strong, for Snufkin. He had to be there to help him calm down, to help him feel safe.

Even after he’d calmed down, they stayed like that, silently holding each other. The only noise was Snufkin’s occasional sniffing. Eventually, Moomin spoke up.

“If you don’t want to be alone this year, I could come with you… If you want to.” He mumbled hesitantly. “I know that you need to be alone and to travel but, I mean, after what happened I’d understand if you didn’t want to be alone. Even if you want to stay here, you’d be welcome. You could sleep with me, and we could go out when it’s not snowing too much, so you wouldn’t feel trapped inside.”

“I…” Snufkin stopped, thinking silently. It took so long before he spoke again that Moomin was sure he’d overstepped. “I think I would like that… Maybe I’ll stay this year…”

Moomin couldn’t believe his ears. He pulled away from Snufkin slightly to look at him, surprised.

“Really?”

Snufkin nodded. “I’m not sure to want to travel this year after that... And if you don’t mind it, I’d like to spend more time with you.” He explained, blushing slightly. “I’m… Scared of going out on my own.” He added quietly, looking down.

“You don’t have to be scared.” Moomin reassured gently, reaching out with one paw to caress Snufkin’s cheek. “As long as you’re in Moomin Valley, we’ll always be here, whether you sleep at MoominHouse or in your tent, and even if you’re not, you can always come back here whenever you want. And, I’m sure it won’t happen again. I just know that you’ll be fine.”

“You think so?” Snufkin asked, looking up at him timidly.

“Of course!” Moomin beamed. “You always get out of whatever trouble you find yourself in. Remember that time you adopted those children accidentally? You didn’t stay stuck taking care of them, did you? You found a way to make sure they would be in good hands. And when you burnt all the signs from that park and tazed the park keeper, you didn’t even get put in jail… Well until you put yourself in jail because we’d been arrested for what you’d done… But you wouldn’t even have been arrested if it wasn’t for that. See? You always get out of the trouble you find yourself in. This isn’t any different. If it had to happen again you’d find your way out of it, like you just did. If it hadn’t been for that avalanche, you’d been fine.”

“I guess so. But I would still have been hurt. I was already pretty bad before I stopped running.” Snufkin admitted quietly.

“Yes, but you were out of their sight, and you were close to the Valley. If it were to happen again and without the avalanche, you’d just find your way back home and we’d help you again. Or you’d just find a place to rest until you’d be in better condition to go home. And if you get into trouble, and you’re not back after a few weeks of Spring… I’ll come searching for you.” Moomin said, a little unsure.

“Would you really?” Snufkin asked, looking hopefully at Moomin.

“Of course, I would!” Moomin nodded firmly. “I couldn’t stand the idea of something happening to you. I couldn’t just sit there and wait for you to come back without doing anything. I know that you always keep your promises, you always come back when Spring comes, even if you’re late, sometimes. I know that you’ll always come back before at least the third week. You’ve been late before for different reasons, but you’ve always been back in two weeks. If you’re not back before the third one I’ll come find you. I promise.”

“Thank you, Moomin” Snufkin said quietly as he hugged Moomin, burying his face in Moomin’s neck. “It means a lot.”

Moomin hugged back, happy to be able to hold his friend again. “I care too much about you to let you get into any trouble.” He mumbled into Snufkin’s hair.

Snufkin nuzzled Moomin’s neck in answer, showing how much he appreciated it without using words. 

They hugged each other for a little longer before Moomin finally sighed, announcing that it was time they went to bed. They both didn’t really want to pull away from each other, so it was quickly decided that they would sleep together. They easily cuddled down in the soft and warm bed and finally let themselves fall into pleasant dreams.

That night, Snufkin wasn’t spared from the nightmares, but, this time, instead of running towards nothing, he found himself to be running towards Moomin. The troll quickly came to stand between him and his assailants, protecting him and making them run away. Snufkin was still shaken up from the experience, but Moomin pulled him into a warm hug, telling him sweet things to reassure him, before leading him back to the bridge where they sat down and looked at the water underneath their feet as they leaned against each other.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoy it so far!
> 
> Can you feel it coming to its end?   
> It's finally time for our dear boy to get better and to remember. Now he can only get better and better until everything is just a vague memory :3


	13. Chapter 13

When he woke up the next morning, he found himself enveloped in Moomin’s arms, his snout resting atop his head. This one was still sleeping soundly, seemingly not bothered by the light of the sun starting to spread in the room quite yet.

Snufkin, although he was more than awake already, didn’t want to wake up his dear friend by moving, nor did he want to get away from his tender embrace. He snuggled against the troll’s fluffy fur, making himself more comfortable, closing his eyes again as he tried to go back to sleep.

Despite how comfortable he was, Snufkin couldn’t fall back asleep. He wasn’t sure if it was due to the fact that he had been sleeping so much lately, or the fact that he was still having flashbacks of what had happened to him now and again as he tried to fall asleep, or if it was his old habit of waking up with the sun that was coming back as he got better.

He kept trying for a while, tossing and turning slightly against the troll in frustration, before finally giving up. He sighed heavily before carefully sitting up, gently lifting Moomin’s arms up to slip away from his embrace.

After a quick reflection, he decided that he didn’t want to be alone but didn’t want to have to wake up his friend when he’d spent so many days having to deal with his many nightmares. So, he got up, careful to not make a sound, and headed downstairs quietly.

“Good morning, Snufkin, dear.” MoominMamma greeted with a warm smile. “How are you feeling today? I thought you’d still be sleeping for a while.”

“Good morning, Mamma. I’m quite alright, thank you. I couldn’t go back to sleep.” Snufkin explained timidly.

“Did something happen that night?” The mother asked knowingly. “Is it because of your nightmares again?”

“Yes. I mean… No… I don’t really know.” Snufkin sighed. “It’s just that I felt too awake to go back to sleep and I kept having those images come back, of what happened to me, when I closed my eyes.” He mumbled, a little embarrassed.

“Oh? Do you finally remember then?” She asked, surprised but relieved at the news.

“Yes.” Snufkin mumbled, a little awkwardly. “I remembered yesterday.”

“I see.” MoominMamma hummed. “That’s good.” She beamed at him, inviting him to come closer as she opened her arms to offer a hug.

“I don’t know if I don’t prefer when I couldn’t remember.” Snufkin grumbled as he let MoominMamma envelop him in her arms, pulling him close to her for a comforting hug.

“I know it can appear worse now, but, I’m sure it’s for the best. Now that you remember, you’ll finally be able to get better. I’m sure it’ll take no time now until you’re free of your nightmares.” She tried to reassure him, stroking his hair lovingly.

“Really?” He asked quietly against her, unsure of the truth in her words.

“Of course.” She smiled at him, kissing his hair lovingly. “To get free of nightmares, you have to remember what they are about, and to tell someone about it. Then, when that’s done. You’ll be able to forget about it. You’ll see. You’ll slowly stop having them until you’re totally free of them. I’m sure it won’t be too long now.” She reassured.

“I hope so.” Snufkin sighed, slowly letting go of MoominMamma. “I don’t want to keep waking Moomin up every night.” He mumbled.

“Don’t worry. I’m sure it won’t take long.” She smiled at him, petting his hair gently. “And, I’m sure Moomin doesn’t mind at all.”

“Still.” Snufkin sighed again. “It’s not good for him either to not sleep for a full night.”

“It’s not that bad, besides, he’ll soon be able to sleep a full night, and you too.” She said with confidence.

“I hope you’re right Mamma.” Snufkin mumbled quietly.

“Now, would you like some coffee while I’m preparing breakfast?” She offered with a warm smile.

“If you don’t mind.” Snufkin nodded timidly.

“And, if you want, you can talk to me about your nightmares. Maybe it’ll help too.” She offered as she prepared the cup of coffee.

Snufkin thought for a moment, going to sit at the kitchen table as he watched her preparing his cup. When she set the warm cup in front of him, he finally decided that it was worth a shot.

He explained everything he remembered to her, the men, the running, the chase and the shots. He explained what he heard of the men’s intentions, how he’d been scared when they yelled to shoot him. He explained it all to her.

It was a little hard to talk about it again, as it had been when he explained it to Moomin before, but he found that, telling it a second time, to someone else, really felt like he was lifting a weight off his chest.

MoominMamma didn’t say anything while he let it all out, listening quietly as she baked breakfast for the family, not saying anything even when he stopped to fight the urge to cry.

When he was done, MoominMamma offered him a gentle smile, asking silently if he needed another hug, which he accepted, letting her come to him and pull him against her carefully for a quick, reassuring, hug.

After that, they stayed silent, enjoying each other’s company. Snufkin watched as MoominMamma cooked, drinking his coffee slowly, letting its warmth fill him.

After a while, Moomin entered the room groggily, smiling happily at Snufkin when he saw him sitting at the table. He greeted them before going to sit next to Snufkin, seeing that MoominMamma hadn’t finished cooking quite yet. As he approached Snufkin, he quickly brushed a Moominkiss on his cheek, making the mumrik turn red while MoominMamma pretended to not have noticed anything.

The rest of the day was peaceful, they went to rest at Snufkin’s campsite, enjoying mostly silence as Little My went to see Snorkmaiden and Sniff, before coming back to spend some time with the boys for the rest of the day.

The next days went the same way, sometimes Moomin and Snufkin would sit by the river, sometimes on the bridge or at the campsite. They would spend their time together, followed by time with their friends, before going to sleep together, Snufkin still too afraid to be left alone to sleep alone.

His nightmares continued for a while, although less painful. He would dream of the chase but would be saved by Moomin now, this one bringing him home. MoominMamma would welcome them both with some pancakes freshly baked and a warm smile, listening as Snufkin recounted what just happened to him, then they would all talk and laugh together, sometimes falling into a peaceful silence for a while. He rarely woke up through it. Sometimes Moomin would mention that he’d been weeping in his sleep, other times he would be surprised, yet very happy and relieved, telling him that he hadn’t even heard him cry in the night.

Slowly, just like MoominMamma had said, the nightmares died down. He still had them, but it was less and less frequent.

As the days went by, he slowly got better and better. Soon, he was able to walk on his own again. He couldn’t walk for too long at first, but, as the days continued, he slowly got used to walking again.

Every day, Moomin took him a little farther, until he felt too tired to continue. They’d stop then, sitting on the ground and resting for a while before going back home to their friends.

It didn’t take too long before Snufkin was fully healed. The only reminder of what had happened being his nightmares, that he still had on a regular basis, and his still present fear of going back on a trip alone.

Still, despite his fear, he went back to his campsite when he felt ready, setting up his camp with Moomin’s help. It didn’t take too long for him to recover all his habits of wanderer, feeling even better after spending a few nights in his tent.

He’d accepted Moomin’s offer to sleep with him in his tent for a while, but, slowly let him go back to his house, leaving him to sleep alone. It was hard at first, but he quickly adjusted to it again.

At the end of the summer, Moomin would muse on how quickly Snufkin had gotten better and had returned to his habits. He’d praise him on it, proud of him and how he quickly overcome his fear to return to his normal life.

Of course, Moomin continued to come by to sleep with Snufkin often, as was their agreement, as they wanted to spend as much time together as they could. They weren’t sure how being a couple would change their dynamic, but they figured out that, they really didn’t need to change anything aside from how much time they allowed themselves to spend with each other.

That winter, Snufkin decided, despite having taken back his normal life of wanderer for a while, that he still wanted to spend this winter with the Moomins, trying his best to hibernate for as long as possible. Moomin showed him around the Valley when they’d wake up through their hibernation, presenting him to Too-Ticky and retelling the story of what happened the year Little My got frozen by the Lady of the Cold.

When Spring came, Snufkin was ready for a new year of adventures, ready to go out in the world to explore, preferably with his Moomin by his side.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! I hope you liked the fic!
> 
> There we go. It is finally done. I'm really sorry for all the times I forgot to update and how long it took to finish it.
> 
> Now, I'm not done here with Moomins fics. I might post less often because I'm having trouble finding the motivation to write for now, but I'm still going to make more. I actually have still a list of about 30 different (more or less) ideas to write. So, you can be sure that there will be more!  
> I actually already have a short fic coming, but I'll wait a few days before posting it to give me time to write a little more of the others.  
> Be prepared for more hurt/comfort :3c


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